Naruto's Kit
by brown phantom
Summary: An injury affects the seal and releases the Kyuubi, but the result isn't what anyone could have expected. ::The first story to ever portray the kyuubi this way::
1. Chapter 1

_Here's the mandatory disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. But if I did, by now Naruto would have said something about Hinata's confession._

Chapter 1: A Surprise Attack With A Surprising Result

Four shinobi of 18 years of age were heading towards Konoha from Ame. One wore an orange-with-black jumpsuit and had blonde hair and whisker marks on his face. Another wore a tan jacket, had brown hair with one red streak on each cheek under his eyes, and was riding a dog. Another wore a dark green jacket with a high collar and hood up to hide most distinguishing features, except for his sunglasses. The last was the only female in the group and she wore a lavender jacket and had long black hair with a blueish tint and pale eyes with a lavender tint. The only common feature between them all was the Konoha hitai-ate they all sported in their preferred ways.

They were Team Eight accompanied by Konoha's latest and greatest hero, Naruto Uzumaki. He had been the village's hero since day one, literally, although for the better part of his life he was an unsung hero regarded as a villain. He had warmed his way into several people's hearts by the time he was 13, and even more by the time he was 16. One of the things that had helped him the most was when he saved the people of Konoha from Pain of the Akatsuki. The entire town had cheered for him when he returned, almost everyone dropping their prejudices against him. The downside was that everyone had found out his dirty little secret involving the Kyuubi, but those that knew him still respected him. One person was quoted as saying that if he was the fox, then obviously the demon wasn't demonic in the first place. Even so, everyone said he wasn't really the fox, and now the older generation finally started to agree.

Sadly not everyone had a change of heart in that one instance, particularly the seniors on the council. But even they had their opinions changed on an occasion not too long ago. When Danzo made Hokage, he had no intention of having it be a filler position until Tsunade recovered. He gave most of the missions to his ROOT, had the other ninjas work on reconstruction, and tried to corrupt the other kages into giving him power over the other nations. He might have succeeded even, had the Akatsuki not shown up and one guard caught onto his sharingan usage. When he got back to Konoha after a battle with rogue nin Sasuke Uchiha, he feared he had to take a preemptive measure to keep his position, meaning he chose to kill Tsunade in her sleep. Too bad for him Naruto and Shizune caught him and fought him off, which was easy since the old warhawk was out of top shape and tired from the previous fight. They incapacitated him and he was put on trial. Luckily one of Shizune's toxins was an extra-strong truth serum so Danzo was forced to confess, thus losing all support from the other council members. He was executed and other ROOT members were reprogramed by Ibiki and Inoichi in time. Tsunade woke up and was regiven her position, after she reapplied her younger look. Her first act was to give Naruto a field promotion to chuunin.

By now even the old fossils once on the council decided to give Naruto a chance, albeit grudgingly. And with former ROOT members, Sai included, still under surveillance, all the other ninjas got back on duty. Sakura stayed in town most of the time to heal others until Tsunade was 100% again so Naruto teamed up with other teams like he did when Sasuke left. At the moment he was with Team Eight since Kurenai had yet to retake mission work even after having her son. That and everyone wanted to give him and Hinata more time together after her little confession. Including themselves.

-Flashback to shortly after Pain battle-

"Hi Hinata, can I talk with you for a bit?" Naruto greeted her at the remains of the Hyuuga compound the day after he came back from seeking the Raikage.

Hinata blushed, knowing exactly what he wanted to discuss. She looked to her father, who nodded his approval then went back to supervising the reconstruction of the estate. She turned back to the whiskered blond. "S-sure, Naruto-kun." The two walked away to one of the forests around the city outside what was left of the walls. They sat down on a log that was near a creek with lots of wildflowers. "So... wha-what's on y-your mind, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto looked up at the clouds and some passing birds. "Well, I was thinking... about what you said to me earlier." Out of the corner of his eye he saw her blush deepen and she began fiddling with her fingers. "Is that... really what you think of me?"

She could tell in his voice he was curious and maybe even a little hopeful. "Y-yes, it is, Naruto-kun. I meant it, I love you. Is that... a p-problem for you?"

Naruto placed his hand over hers, making her gasp lightly. "No not at all, Hinata-chan. I'm just surprised that a girl like you could even like someone like me as more than just an occasional teammate."

"Why wouldn't I?" Hinata asked. "Is it because of... well... the Kyuubi? I don't mind. You're too nice and caring to be a demon. And... even if you w-were a demon, then I should be ashamed of m-myself for being a human."

This surprised Naruto greatly. "Really? But... demons are dangerous and evil."

"And humans aren't?" Hinata countered. "People can be monsters too, especially if they hated you for holding the Kyuubi captive. You're the most humane and admirable person I know, and I love you for it. Even if... if you d-don't f-feel the same..." Hinata was cut off by Naruto wiping off a tear she didn't know she had shed.

"Hinata-chan, thank you. This means a lot to me. I wish I could say it back, but I never thought you would accept me that way." Naruto told her, and she felt her heart crack a little, ready to break completely. "But... I am willing to give us a chance, if you would like." Her eyes widened and her heart soared at this. Naruto then gave her a warm grin. "So what do you say?"

Her hug was his answer.

-End Flashback-

Since then the two had been a couple. Kiba and Shino had supported their teammate and helped give her advice on how to appeal to Naruto more. Shizune, Ino, and Sakura, who was a little upset since she began realizing how much Naruto meant to her, also tried to teach Naruto how to please a woman romantically. Kurenai helped out a little there too since Hinata was like a daughter to her. Neji helped them both out since Hinata was his relative and he felt he owed Naruto for opening his eyes years ago.

They had enjoyed their relationship greatly for the past two years. The Hyuuga clan wasn't preventing Hinata from being with him and Naruto didn't have anybody trying to stop him either. But the only thing that was an obstacle were the few remaining Akatsuki members. The black Zetsu had been vanquished about a year ago when Naruto and Team Ten paired up with the Sand Siblings at the border of Wind Country. It took everything they had to finish off the freaky gemini flytrap, but they succeeded. And strangely, after that all the produced white Zetsu's withered and died within hours after that, like their lives were connected to the black Zetsu. Kisame was killed in Land of Lightning with several Kumo nin and naruto as witnesses to confirm the details. So now all that was left was Tobi and the still missing Sasuke.

As long as the Akatsuki were still out there and hunting the last jinchuuriki, Naruto and Hinata couldn't advance their relationship. Naruto felt that if they did that and he were to be captured and killed it would destroy Hinata and she would die shortly after. Once the group of missing nins was gone completely, then maybe they could go further. Hinata understood his reasons and went with them, but found herself getting antsy as time went on, and wanting to take the risk. Unknown to her, Naruto felt that way too.

While the two were running through the trees into Land of Fire, Kiba and Akamaru smelled something they didn't like. "We should stop here for a moment." He quietly told everyone as they came to a stop in the branches.

"What's wrong?" Naruto asked.

Akamaru looked left and right trying to get a better lock on the scent. Kiba checked above and behind them. "Not sure, but I think we've got company." With that, Shino got his insects ready to swarm, Hinata got her byakugan active, and Naruto created two shadow clones and they took a triangular position with him to look everywhere, each armed with a kunai.

Hinata saw something spinning really fast like a shuriken fly into view from the west right towards them, slicing through the trees with ease. "Everyone jump now!" Hinata warned them. They obeyed and all four avoided being cut.

They landed on the ground and looked westward. They saw a tall man wearing a Kiri hitai-ate with the metal plate right above the right ear. His hair was yellow and cut short with a long thin braid that almost looked like a rat tail. He wore a dark grey tank top with earth-brown armor pads on his shoulders and a similar colored glove on his right hand. He also wore loose camouflage patterned pants that were dull blue rather than green with steel grey army boots. One of the most disturbing features was that there were scars carved onto his left forearm that looked like the symbols for Kiri, Kumo, Kusa, and Taki, from top to bottom.

The spinning weapon turned and returned to him, and he caught it in his gloved hand. The weapon turned out to be a one-sided sword with the blade bent at an obtuse angle, making the sword look like a boomerang. Judging from the fact that it returned to him showed it acted like one too. He smirked a fiendish grin. "Well well well, looks like I can add Konoha's symbol to my collection."

"Any idea who this is?" Kiba asked as he got off Akamaru and readied a food pill.

"Sorry, I do not." Shino replied.

"Taste this! Hiraito!" The newcomer shouted and swung his sword. It flew at them like a shuriken again. The Konoha nin easily dodged it by jumping away. At that moment the newcomer made the tiger sign. "Rai!" The boomerang sword instantly shot off bolts of lightning in all directions for a moment as it swung. Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru were behind some trees so they were missed, and Hinata managed to briefly make a Rotation to shield herself. Both of Naruto's clones took the full force of the voltage and disappeared. The sword then cut through another tree and returned to its owner. "Damn. Well, no fun if the kill was easy."

"Don't get too excited pal." Naruto commented as he threw some shuriken at the swordsman, who deflected them with ease. He slashed at the orange-clad ninja and hit, only for him to vanish in a puff of smoke. From behind him the real Naruto was creating a rasengan with another shadow clone and pounced at him. The Kiri swordsman swung his sword without throwing it and struck them both in the stomach. The clone vanished but Naruto felt a gash on his abdomen and yelled.

Hinata screamed at seeing her boyfriend injured and rushed to his side. Kiba and Akamaru did their Beast Mimicry Jutsu and attacked with Fang Over Fang. The swordsman jumped and blocked their assault with his sword. A swarm of Shino's bugs flew at him and he sliced at them, but it did no damage. The chakra-eating insects landed on him and did their job. The swordsman tried batting them off, but they clung on tightly and more joined them. Kiba and Akamaru got ready to attack again. Then from out of nowhere a few smoke bombs landed at the swordsman's feet and smoke appeared. When it cleared the swordsman was gone and Shino's bugs were on the ground, twitching but alive.

"Huh? Where'd he go? How'd he leave so quickly?" Kiba asked as he looked around the area, finding no trace of the enemy's scent.

Shino was silent as he went over to his downed swarm and gently scooped them up. "Perhaps he had assistance somewhere."

"Better check with the Hokage and see if he's listed." Kiba suggested. Shino nodded. "Everything okay, Hinata?"

They looked over towards Naruto where he was gripping his bleeding stomach. Hinata opened his orange jacket and pulled up his black shirt. The wound looked pretty bad but not fatal and cut right across the now-visible seal. Hinata reached into her bag for her healing balm and had just grabbed it when Naruto yelled again and the seal glowed a soft red. Team Eight's eyes widened when they saw the seal pulse, then shrink and vanish then red chakra leak out of Naruto's wound, healing it in the meantime.

"Oh no. This could be bad." Kiba stated, a little worried.

The red chakra left Naruto's body and condensed in a ball whose diameter was roughly the size of a large microwave at least. It then started taking on a humanoid shape, curled up in a fetal position. Within the chakra one could see a small skeleton start to form, one the size of a small child. But what caught everyone's attention the most, even Naruto's now, was that this skeleton had nine tails coming out of the pelvis.

"Oh crap. I think the Kyuubi's been released." Kiba said, now a little more than worried.

"But it's so small." Hinata added, expecting something bigger than this in such a scenario.

Muscles and veins started forming on the bones, giving it an even more humane appearance rather than vulpine. Then skin and red hair appeared, making the thing of interest look like a young redheaded girl with nine red fox tails and two red fox ears, both features tipped black. She had no clothes on so Hinata took Naruto's jacket and covered the young girl. She sniffed and her eyes twitched open. Her eyes were the same blue as Naruto's. She sat up and looked over them all, her expression one of innocent curiosity, until she saw Naruto. Then her tails wagged and she smiled, throwing herself into his lap.

"Otou-san!"


	2. Chapter 2

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, all the other jinchuuriki would have more than just a cameo appearance._

Chapter 2: The Mystery Of The Red-Haired, Nine-Tailed Girl

Everyone present was shocked silent as the new child suddenly referred to Naruto as her father. Shino actually moved his sunglasses down a little to get a better look at the scene. Kiba and Hinata had no idea what to do, and Naruto was even more clueless. Akamaru got in closer and sniffed the girl, and one of her tails playfully batted his nose, making him moan in irritation.

Kiba decided to check out the girl's scent too, but he did so from a distance. "Naruto, that girl may look somewhat human, but her scent is all fox." Akamaru barked in agreement.

The nine-tailed child then looked over the members of Team Eight curiously. She also appeared to be sniffing them out as well. Everyone was anxious, and maybe even a little fearful, to see her reaction to them, but she just sat there in Naruto's lap, waiting.

Naruto couldn't hold in his question anymore. "Why did you just call me Otou-san?"

She looked up towards him. "What else would I call my daddy?"

This was probably the first time in history that Naruto had a deeper blush than Hinata.

"Little girl, what is your name?" Shino inquired, putting his sunglasses in their proper position.

The young girl's eyes pointed upwards for a moment. "I... I don't remember. What is my name, Otou-san?"

"Well... uhh... we just call you Kyuubi. You don't really have a name outside of that as far as we know."

"OK, but can I have a real name soon?" She asked in a cute way only kids could do and get away with.

"So, Kyuubi, what's the last thing you remember?" Shino inquired again, being the most rational of them all at the moment.

Kyuubi's eyes pointed upwards again for a little longer this time. "I can remember... well... being in some kind of cage and seeing Otou-san sometimes. I can't remember what we did or how he got me out though. I also remember some city in a forest that seems really familiar. And I remember these evil-looking red eyes on some old guy. That's about it." Nobody said anything, then she continued. "You all seem really familiar to me. Have we met before?"

Kiba and Hinata shook their heads. "Nope, but we're good friends of... well... your father I guess." Kiba struggled to tell her, not sure how to best phrase it.

"So you're pack?" Kyuubi asked.

"In a way." Kiba answered, now more confident in what he could say to her. "We're not family, but yes, we're pack." He saw the confused look on Naruto's face. "I'll explain later." He didn't have to explain anything to Hinata and Shino since they were already familiar with the Inuzuka way of thinking.

"Is there anything to eat?" Kyuubi asked, looking and sniffing around.

"In a moment." Hinata told her as they started setting up for dinner.

Kiba used a fire jutsu to light a campfire and Shino looked for edible plants. Naruto and Kiba looked thru their provisions to see what would be their main course. Naruto pulled out some ramen containers and Hinata filled a small pot with water with a water jutsu and set it to boil. Hinata then readjusted and zipped up Naruto's jacket so Kyuubi wouldn't be so exposed to them all or too uncomfortable in it. Kiba pulled out some beef jerky and ration bars and Kyuubi started drooling at the scent of them. He handed her a piece of jerky and she eagerly tore at it.

Shino found some edible grasses and mushrooms and roasted them while the ramen cooked. Everyone munched on some jerky and rations in the meantime. They had some entertainment too when Kyuubi tried fighting Akamaru for one of his doggy treats. Naruto stopped her and she caved in, making a low growl. Kiba recognized it as canine-speech for 'Sorry Alpha-male. Kit will be good.'

"Hey Naruto, looks like she knows the canine language." Kiba commented.

"But, she's a fox not a dog."

Kiba groaned. "Foxes are part of the overall canine family baka. Foxes, dogs, wolves, they're all connected and they all speak the same language."

"And you can understand it?" Naruto asked.

"Did you think I was just pretending to talk with Akamaru?" Kiba asked back, a little annoyed. "All Inuzuka can understand the canine language and, to a point, speak it ourselves."

He and Naruto noticed the curious look Kyuubi gave him. She made a short growl. "What'd she say?" Naruto asked.

"Pack-male." Kiba answered. He responded in a low growl of his own that meant 'Pup', which was more natural for him than 'Kit'. While difficult for most humans to speak, there were key phrases of canine-speech that humans could properly mimic, if they knew what they were saying that is. Kyuubi smiled and her tails wagged, and Kiba gave a friendly grin back to make her feel comfortable. "She's trying to bond with us by acknowledging us as a group she can fit into. It's standard behavior among young ones."

Kyuubi made the 'Pack-male' sound at Shino, who merely patted her head in response. Then Kyuubi called Hinata 'Pack-female' which earned her another pat. She didn't have to refer to Naruto as anything since she had already claimed him as the alpha male and father figure. While everyone was less wary being around her, they were still curious as to why the much feared Kyuubi would be like this. It made no sense to them.

Dinner finished shortly and they all started eating. They got a little more entertainment when Kyuubi ate almost all the ramen before Naruto could. The surprised look on his face made them all laugh a little, except for Shino who just smirked under his high collar. He gave her an irritated glare and she meekly offered him the last cup. All members of Team Eight wondered if having her sealed in him was the reason Naruto was such a ramen fanatic or if it was the other way around. When the mushrooms were ready to be eaten, Kyuubi didn't touch any until Naruto actually handed her one. He figured she probably thought she needed his permission now.

"We probably shouldn't stay here much longer. No telling when that man could return, if at all." Shino told them. They all nodded.

"Are we going home, Otou-san?" Kyuubi asked.

Naruto paled at hearing this. He knew he couldn't just leave the girl. Even if she was the greatest demon known to man, right now she was a child. And Naruto knew full well what could happen if a child was abandoned for something like fear of what it might be. But still, how would anyone in Konoha handle this? He calmed himself and looked down at her, still in his lap. "Actually, Kyuubi-chan, me and the others have to talk about something important, in private." Everyone caught his use of the 'chan' suffix.

"Please don't leave me alone, Otou-san. I don't want to be alone now." She pleaded.

"Well, this should help you." Naruto said as he made the cross sign and created a shadow clone. "This way I'm still close by."

"I've leave some of my insects around to keep an eye on her as well." Shino said as some flying beetles came out of his sleeves.

Kyuubi looked at them with interest. "Is this why you smell like bugs?" He nodded. "Don't they itch?"

"They're not fleas. They live in my body like a hive." The Aburame explained.

"Neat." Kyuubi told him, looking at the many beetles.

The four ninjas left to the trees about ten meters away, leaving Akamaru with Kyuubi as an extra guard. "So what are we going to do about her? Are we really going to take the Kyuubi to Konoha?" Kiba started.

"We can't just desert her, but what would happen if she came with us?" Naruto asked.

"Worst case scenario for us is that she decides to destroy the village once she gets there." Shino stated. "For her the worst case scenario would be everyone tries to kill her on sight."

"That's what I'm afraid of." Naruto added seriously. "If the people were trying to kill me as a kid when they just _thought_ I was the fox, I can only imagine what they'd do to her."

'Wow. Naruto-kun sounds so concerned and protective, almost like a real father.' Hinata thought.

"Can we be sure this isn't some kind of trick?" Kiba asked. "She smells so sincere and calm, but..." He then trailed off, like he had forgotten whatever point he was trying to make.

"It looks like the Kyuubi forgot everything that happened before now and might just be a normal child now." Hinata commented.

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "So, do you think that when the seal got damaged, it affected Kyuubi herself?"

"It's possible. Or maybe the Kyuubi was a child to begin with." Shino added.

"Whoa, you mean that the village was almost destroyed by a child demon?" Kiba asked, then turned to Naruto. "Tough break man. I'd hate to see someone like that throw a temper tantrum."

"I don't think Kyuubi was a kid from the start." Naruto argued. "I saw the fox in the seal occasionally, and I'm pretty sure it... she was an adult then. So I'm willing to bet she was changed."

"For argument's sake, we'll go with that hypothesis. Even so, the important issue is what are we to do with her?" Shino asked.

"Why don't we ask Hokage-sama?" Hinata suggested.

"Still, how can we get her into Konoha?" Naruto asked.

It looked like Naruto had already decided to try and help the fox-tailed child. Hinata admired his caring side while Shino and Kiba just hoped he knew what he was doing. "In that case, we should test to see if she can henge herself to look like a normal human. Since she's a fox I'm sure she could do it. And we'll say we found her alone and felt she was better off with us. We'll only tell Hokage-sama the truth." Shino offered.

"Hope Baa-chan doesn't have a heart attack." Naruto thought out loud.

"I'd be more worried about what the Kyuubi would do instead." Kiba added.

"Let's see if maybe she's really just a child now, Kiba-kun." Hinata suggested. "Also, we should give her a different name. We can't call her Kyuubi in Konoha. That's just inviting trouble."

"Any suggestions? I never figured I would have to name a kid." Naruto said.

"Not at the moment, no." Shino replied. "The only thing I can think of is Kyuuko, but I'm not sure it's a good one."

"How about Biyoku? Seems appropriate for her." Kiba offered, coming up with an Inuzuka-style name for her.

"M-maybe... Akane?" Hinata suggested.

Naruto thought about it. "I'm sure we can come up with something by the time we get there. Good ideas though." Another thought came to him. "Hey, Kiba, any idea why she says I'm her father? Is it some kind of fox thing?"

"Maybe. Y'know how young birds assume the first thing they see is their mother?" Kiba asked, and Naruto nodded. "Well, for most mammals, the scent they're most familiar with tells them who their parent is. It's called imprinting, and maybe she imprinted on you because of your jacket."

"Or maybe it was the work of the seal." Shino countered. "Since Naruto and the Kyuubi have a connection, and her mind is clearly disorientated from something, then maybe she just assumes Naruto is her parent, despite the difference in species." Shino looked towards where they had left her. "We should get going soon." They nodded and went back to the demon child.

When they got there, they saw her chasing some of Shino's bugs playfully as they flew, smiling like a carefree little girl, being watched by Akamaru and Naruto's clone. Akamaru barked and she turned to see the four adults and went right up to them. "Is everything okay, Otou-san?"

Naruto smiled to make her feel comfortable. "For now. We might have a problem once we get home, but we'll handle that later." He dispelled the shadow clone, then lifted her onto his back and they all headed off to Konoha, hoping they weren't heading into trouble.


	3. Chapter 3

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, the Uchiha would have their own version of the Caged Bird Seal. After all, why should one doujutsu clan have to do it to guard their kekkei genkai when another doesn't? The Uchiha's are definitely arrogant in that case._

Chapter 3: The Godaime Hokage And The Kyuubi No Kitsune

"Could you repeat that? I must have misheard you." Tsunade said to Team Eight and Naruto as she used her pinkie finger to dig out the obstruction she was sure she had in her ear.

Tsunade was sitting at her desk in the hokage office with Shizune and Tonton at her left. In front of her were from her left to right Kiba, Shino, Hinata, and Naruto, who had just given her the news of the mission. The Kyuubi was currently sitting outside the room, guarded by a shadow clone and Akamaru. She still wore Naruto's jacket as her only clothing and it kept her tails hidden as long as they were curled up against her back. Her ears were pressed against her scalp and her hair had been moved to cover them for now. She was nervous, since Kiba told her they were seeing the 'alpha' of the whole village and it was up to her on what her fate was. Too nervous to even keep a proper henge on.

Shino, being the most diplomatic and tactful of them all, chose to answer the hokage. "We did our mission to check Ame for any remnants of Akatsuki as you ordered, with minimal interference. While there we found nothing, implicating that whatever remains of the criminal organization is either too well hidden for us or they have relocated their headquarters. On our way back we encountered a Kiri nin that attacked us. In the fight his sword cut the seal on Naruto's stomach, and he soon retreated afterwards. The seal disappeared before our eyes and red chakra leaked out of the wound, healing it in the process. The red chakra then condensed and took on the form of a young girl of about seven or eight years of age with nine red fox tails."

"Basically, you heard us right the first time." Kiba added.

Tsunade laid her head in her crossed arms and sighed wearily. 'I really need a drink and a day off, in that order.' Then she slowly raised her head back up, deciding to start off small. "Can you describe the person you encountered and fought?"

"Yes. He wore a Kiri hitai-ate, blue-toned camouflage pants, and one glove. On his left arm were symbols of several hidden villages carved into his skin. His sword was shaped like a boomerang and could be thrown like one." Shino described the assailant using the most unique and descriptive details he could remember.

"Hmm... sounds somewhat familiar." Tsunade mumbled as she reached for her copy of the bingo book. She shifted thru several pages then stopped. "A-ha! Thought so." She then showed them the page she had stopped on. "Would this be him?"

The four shinobi took a look at the picture on the page. "Yeah, that's him. Who is he?"

"His name is Kashou Ryuutake, and he's supposedly another of Kiri's Seven Swordsmen. He was actually a long-range fighter and his sword, named Hiraito, pretty much was a bladed boomerang. According to the records he could channel chakra into it from a distance, somehow without any real connection to the blade, to make it more lethal. Records also say he's a bit of a killjoy and had killed in Kiri, Kumo, Taki, and Kusa before."

"Well, that explains those scars on his arms." Naruto commented.

"Now, onto the more important subject." Tsunade said as she put the book away. "Tell me about the Kyuubi child."

"Well, we kinda named her Akane, since calling her 'Kyuubi' here would be a horrible idea." Naruto told her. "We asked her what she can remember, but she can't really remember much. She does remember meeting me before and being in a cage, but not why or how she got out or anything before that. Oh, and she said something about a man with red eyes."

"Red eyes, huh?" Tsunade asked. "Is she really acting like a kid?"

"Actually yes." Kiba answered. "We kept an eye on her constantly on the way back. Mostly she just played when she could and always did as we told her. Especially when Naruto called the shots." The Inuzuka pointed his thumb at the whiskered blonde when he said that last part. "She asked a lot of questions and we were careful answering her, but she never attacked or tried to run off."

"If anything she couldn't get close enough to me." Naruto commented. The demon child now named Akane by Team Eight stuck by Naruto like a tick if she could. Kiba told him pups and kits traditionally only felt safe when they were near their parents or guardians. This was even more so in abandoned pups and kits that latched onto a new caregiver. It reminded Naruto of Haku's behavior regarding Zabuza, or Ranmaru's behavior regarding Raiga.

"What exactly do you plan to do with her?" Shizune butted in, and it was obvious to all but Naruto that she was really asking him instead of everyone.

"Well, that's something we thought we should ask you, baa-chan." Naruto told Tsunade.

Tsunade clasped her fingers together and rested her chin on them. She then closed her eyes and thought about it. "Can you bring her in here for a moment?" She asked when her eyes reopened, anxious and wary to see this demon for herself.

The four shinobi nodded and opened the door. Naruto's clone dispelled and Akamaru tugged on Akane's borrowed jacket. She walked in and stood right between Naruto and Hinata, leaning on Naruto's leg. Tsunade and Shizune looked right at Akane curiously, without making any sounds or facial gestures. Naruto ruffled the girl's hair and her fox ears stood up. Then her tails relaxed and fell out of the bottom of the jacket, but didn't move much after that.

'The girl looks afraid, like she thinks we're going to do something to her.' Shizune thought to herself.

'Hmm... so this is the dreaded nine-tailed fox demon that attacked Konoha and made Naruto's life hell?' Tsunade asked herself. 'Well, actually it was the dumb-ass villagers who made his life hell, not her. Even so, right now she barely looks like she could be an bigger annoyance than him. But she is young, so she could get dangerous later. Unless...' Her train of thought trailed off.

Tsunade smiled, but it was more of a 'this I gotta see' grin than a warm welcoming one. "So you're Akane, right?"

"Yes, ma'am." She said with a bow. Tsunade noticed a slight tremble or twitch in her movements.

"Come here and let me get a good look at you."

Akane's left foot took a step back and she looked up at Naruto. He nodded and had no fear emitting off him that she could sense, so she slowly went up to the side of the desk Shizune wasn't at. Tsunade turned her chair towards the girl and Shizune leaned in closer. Akane kept her hands clasped together in front of her and the fur on her tails was starting to stand on end.

"She's a cute one, isn't she?" Shizune said to Tsunade, making Akane relax and her eyes widen. Tsunade then noticed her eyes were identical to Naruto's normal blue ones, not the red slitted ones he got when the Kyuubi's chakra would influence him.

"Well, Akane, what are your plans regarding you and Naruto?" Tsunade broke the ice, wondering if there was any latent hostility between the bijuu and it's former container.

"I... are you going to take me away from Otou-san?" She fearfully asked.

"Otou-san?" Tsunade and Shizune asked in shock. While Team Eight and Naruto had told them that the released Kyuubi was affectionate to the orange-loving ninja, they didn't indulge in that little bit of information right away. Tsunade looked right at Naruto. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Can we tell you later?" Naruto asked, not wanting Akane around when that came up.

"No. Now!" Tsunade demanded, rising from her chair. Akane 'eeped' and stepped back.

"Well, she kinda imprinted on him Hokage-sama." Kiba jumped in to help out. "We also think the seal might have something to do with it."

'Imprinting? That makes sense.' Tsunade thought then sat back down. "Naruto, I'd like to have Inoichi Yamanaka examine her to see if there's... any effects on her mind that could be a threat to her or others."

"Only if you have Yamato-taichou with him." Naruto insisted. "He's the only one who can do anything if her chakra goes haywire."

"Understood, and smart thinking." Tsunade replied. "Is there anybody any of you can trust with this information?"

"Maybe my mother. No one in town knows more about handling potentially feral children than her." Kiba stated.

"I can't think of anyone in my family who could help us here." Hinata quietly added.

"I for one cannot at this time make any promises regarding my clan." Shino said.

"Personally I say the few who know, the better." Naruto claimed.

Tsunade nodded then reached into one of her drawers and pulled out some folders. "Okay. First, here's the pay for your mission." She said handing them their money. "Next, here's some extra I'm giving so you can get Akane some proper clothes. If anybody asks just say it's a bonus for fighting and telling us about Kashou Ryuutake. After that bring her back her for the night."

"No! I wanna stay with Otou-san!" Akane shouted as she went over to him and gripped his leg. Her claws dug in and hurt him a little, making him wince. He reached down and had her loosen her grip.

Tsunade walked over to the girl and knelt down. "Akane-chan, we need to do this to make sure there's nothing wrong with you. And... Otou-san's home isn't exactly fit for you to move in just yet. While I handle you, he and his friends will get it ready for you."

Tsunade could tell that, demon or not, this girl was really attached to the blonde she thought of as the son she never had. And to separate them would bring nothing but trouble, possibly for all of Konoha if the Kyuubi was mad enough. 'Better to just go with the flow here and let her keep thinking of Naruto as her family. Besides, maybe having a child to take care of would do wonders for Naruto's maturity.'

Tsunade then stood back up and smiled at her favorite knucklehead. "Okay, Naruto take your new daughter clothes shopping. Hinata, you accompany him since you obviously have better taste in girl clothes than him. For the love of Kami-sama try not to cover her in orange. Kiba, see if your mother is available for an SS-rank meeting but don't tell her what it's about. Shino, try and see if anyone in your family could be trusted with this situation, but be discreet about it. You're all dismissed, and anyone returning be here after 8:00." They nodded and left.

"Now Akane-chan, try to henge yourself again and keep it up this time." Naruto could be heard telling the Kyuubi in the hallway.

"Think this is going to go well?" Shizune asked her mentor.

"I can only hope so." The slug sannin responded.

"You do realize what you've just done, do you?"

Tsunade arched her eyebrow and looked at her first apprentice. "What exactly do you mean?"

"You've just made Naruto Uzumaki the guardian and role model for the most powerful demon in the world, who is at this moment in a very impressionable state of mind."

Tsunade's eyes widened in horror at the implications. 'Dear Kami-sama! An unpredictable expert prankster now has a fox demon under his wing! I've never needed a drink more in my life.' She moaned and rested her face in her hands. "Naruto, you had better not make me regret this."


	4. Chapter 4

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Tenten, Shizune, and Jiraiya would have last names._

Chapter 4: Checking Out The Fox For Clothes And Problems

"So what would be a good place to go, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked. He and Hinata were walking down the streets into the market district after separating from Kiba and Shino. He was holding onto Akane's hand to make sure she didn't go wandering off if something caught her eye or nose.

"W-well, I... I think the first she needs i-is a bath." Hinata stuttered, still not completely over the habit when out with Naruto even after about a year of dating. She was doing much better than when she started, but occasionally her stutter would resurface. "Not that she stinks or anything. It's... just better she be clean before trying on clothes."

"Alright. Let's take her back to my place and give her a bath." Naruto said. Akane, who had henged herself to look like a normal red-haired child, grinned at being able to go to his house so soon. Actually it was more of an actual transformation then a henge, since she was a fox demon.

As the three walked towards Naruto's apartment, they drew quite a lot of attention. After all, with a child on one side and the Hyuuga heiress on the other, it looks a lot like the most famous orphan of Konoha now had a family of his own. Akane's demonic hearing let her catch bits and pieces of the villager's gossip.

"Am I seeing things right?"

"Is that the Uzumaki boy with a girl and a kid?"

"Did he get her knocked up?"

"That girl's even dressed like him. Bad taste must be genetic."

Akane tugged Naruto's hand to get his attention. "Otou-san, people are talking about us."

"They're not saying anything bad, are they?" He asked.

"Some. But most are just surprised to see us together. Why?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Just don't worry about it for now. People like to talk and soon they'll find something else to gossip about."

Akane nodded. Hinata and Naruto kept their eyes open to see if anybody looked really upset at the sight they were presenting. Or worse, if anyone was going to do something about it. Sure, the town had dropped their prejudices against Naruto some time ago, but they were probably still a few who would go out of their way to make him miserable. And right now they really didn't need to deal with that.

Before the two got to any clothing stores, they ran across Ino and Sakura, who were window-shopping at the moment. Sakura noticed the pair first. "Hi, Naruto and Hinata. Hey, who's this with you?"

Akane looked at the pink-haired kunoichi and suddenly panicked. She went right behind Naruto and quivered. It was like when Hinata was close to Naruto years ago, but Akane was acting more frightened than nervous. "What's wrong, Akane-chan?" Hinata asked, placing her hand on the demon girl's shoulder.

"I... I don't know. But when I see... that woman, all I can think about is being hit." Akane replied, making everyone widen their eyes.

"You think I'm just going to go and hit you?" Sakura asked, a little mortified and maybe even a little offended. She tried to get closer to prove the girl wrong, but Akane tried to back away some more.

"Sakura-chan, maybe you should back off a bit. I don't think she's in the mood now." Naruto told his team mate.

"I'm just trying to show her I'm harmless." Sakura defended herself.

'Harmless? Yeah, and Shikamaru's a workaholic.' Ino, Hinata, and Naruto sarcastically thought. While they had no reason to think Sakura would actually attack the young girl, 'harmless' just wasn't how one could describe Tsunade's second apprentice.

Akane looked at Ino from behind Hinata, and her instincts told her this girl wasn't a threat. Maybe even sometimes helpful. Nowhere near as good as the pale-eyed girl she was currently close to, but still safer than the one with bubblegum hair.

Ino took a good look at the red-haired girl and instantly thought 'You gotta be kidding me. She's wearing that?' Then she looked at Naruto. "Naruto, you don't have the slightest concept of fashion sense, do you?"

"We're going to get her clothes right after a bath Ino. And I've already been told 'no orange'. What's everybody got against orange?"

"In moderation and coordination it's okay, which you don't do." Ino told him. "I better help you. You need a woman's touch for this." Shopping was one of Ino's favorite things to do in her time off, so she figured it was okay to invite herself along.

"So Hinata-chan's not good enough?" Naruto asked, wondering if he should be offended for her.

"What? No, that's not it. Just thinking a second opinion might be good is all."

"Might as well, Naruto-kun. She is better at this sort of thing than me." Hinata told her boyfriend.

"Fine. But no treating her like a doll." Naruto insisted.

"Okay then, I think I know where we should start." Ino told them as she led them to one of the civilian clothing stores she would go to all the time before she made ninja. They went inside and Ino led them to the part of the store she remembered best. "How about this one?"

"You've gotta be kidding." Naruto and Sakura said in unison. The outfit Ino held was basically a smaller version of Ino's common genin ensemble.

Ino chuckled. "Actually, yeah, I am. But it's still a good idea if you ask me."

Naruto suddenly pictured Akane dressed like Ino and even wearing her hair like Ino used to. Then she pictured her reading fashion magazines and fawning over Sasuke Uchiha and it made his blood run cold. 'Kami-sama, if you care about me at all, you will not have the Kyuubi be a mini-Ino.' Then he pictured Akane acting more like Sakura back in the academy and genin days. 'Scratch that. Mini-Ino would be the lesser of two evils.'

Ino and Sakura starting looking thru the racks trying to find anything that caught their attention. Naruto was therefore allowed to keep working on his train of thought. 'Now that I think about it, Akane-chan could definitely use a good female role model. If she's going to stay, then I don't want to see her grow up demonic. I never thought I'd be a parent so soon, so I'm going to need some help. But from who?' He looked and saw Hinata showing Akane some sundresses and shoes. Naruto tried imagining Akane acting more like Hinata used too. 'Now that one doesn't sound so bad. A timid demon is less likely to go on a rampage than a fangirl one.'

Using the money Tsunade gave them, Naruto was able to afford three different outfits for Akane and two different sets of pajamas, along with shoes, socks, and underwear with some cheap accessories for flair. Ino and Sakura offered to see if they still had any of their old clothes stored away they could give. Hinata couldn't since the Hyuugas weren't much for hand-me-downs. Akane was allowed to put on one of the outfits in the store dressing rooms before leaving. She chose a red t-shirt with a blue skirt and grey sandals. All three girls and even the cashier called her cute when she came out wearing it, making her blush.

8:00 came and Naruto and Hinata brought Akane to the hokage tower after dinner at Ichiraku's and a delayed bath at Naruto's apartment. Teuchi and Ayame were shocked beyond belief to see someone keep pace with Naruto when eating. They saw a lot of profit being made for them later on. Naruto and Hinata met up with Shizune in the main room of the first floor. "We're holding the meeting in Interrogation Room A." She told them, then led them to the basement and the designated room.

Inside the room was Tsunade, Inoichi, Yamato, Ibiki, Anko, Kiba, Shino, and Tsume. Ibiki and Anko were let in on the meeting since they would be able to keep tabs on the girl if anything went wrong. "Hello there Akane. Now that looks much nicer on you than orange, doesn't it?" Tsunade greeted with a smile.

"If you say so, Baa-chan." Akane replied.

Tsunade's eyebrows ticked, then she looked at Naruto angrily. "I didn't tell her to say that. I swear." Naruto defended himself.

Tsunade giggled at him. "I'll let it pass. Sounds cute when she says it." She said as she led Akane to the examination table. 'Looks like he's already rubbing off on her. I really hope Shizune won't say 'I told you so' later.'

Tsunade picked up Akane and placed her on the table. Inoichi and Yamato got in front of her. 'So this is the much-feared Kyuubi, now going by the name Akane?' Inoichi thought. 'Let's start out simple.' "What is your name, little girl?"

Akane tried to act brave. The blonde man she sensed no familiarity with, but the other man she did and it was a comfortable type of familiarity. "I'm Akane. Akane Uzumaki."

"And where do you come from? Where were you born?" Inoichi asked.

"I..." Akane paused for a moment. "I don't remember. I think it was some place with lots of trees and grass. Kinda like here."

"What's the earliest thing you can remember?" Ibiki asked.

Akane closed her eyes to think about it. "Red eyes with black things in them that spun around. They belonged to some old guy in a black cape."

One thought went thru everyone's minds. 'Sharingan.' "What can you remember after that?" Yamato asked.

"Mostly being trapped in darkness, and being hurt over and over. For reasons no one would ever tell me. And feeling lonely." Akane answered, one small tear beginning to pool in her left eye.

Inoichi 'hmmed' and put his hand on his chin. "Tsunade-sama, I think I should check her memories directly, if you'll let me."

"Sure. Yamato, Anko, Ibiki, Tsume, be ready if anything happens." Tsunade ordered. They all nodded.

"Otou-san..." Akane turned to Naruto nervously but stayed on the table.

"It'll be okay Akane-chan. He won't hurt you." He told her. She then slowly turned back to the older blonde man to await whatever he was going to do.

Inoichi made several hand signs then said "Memory Scan Jutsu," and placed his right hand on her forehead. His eye glowed then both of their eyes turned white as the jutsu began working. He found fragmented memories, the first being someone with a sharingan looking right at him since he was viewing them from the Kyuubi's perspective. Then he saw the shinigami and iron bars, then the next memories made no sense to him. He saw the girl running down the streets as people threw garbage at her and shouted nasty things, still watching it from her eyes. He saw her looking at frogs in a pond then someone sneak up from behind and try to drown her until an Anbu saved her. He saw her painting buildings and the hokage monument, sitting in a classroom, and looking out the window of a rundown apartment looking at happy families walk by and sighing.

Then Inoichi saw images of certain people. He saw Iruka Umino trying to save her life from a large shuriken. He saw Kakashi Hatake standing around reading his favorite book. He saw Sasuke sneer and ignore her and Sakura get mad and wail on her. He saw her argue with Jiraiya about peeping then training in several jutsus and fighting styles. He saw her interact with several of the Rookie 12 and several adults, and get along for the most part on occasion with some otherwise instances. And he even saw her fighting several people he didn't recognize, but some of them were Itachi Uchiha and Pain. And then he saw her look at Naruto thru iron bars a few times. The first time it looked like Naruto was angry, then later it was more like they were trying to reach a sort of understanding.

Inoichi then left the girl's mind. Nobody had moved so nothing must have happened. "So, what'd ya see?" Tsume asked.

"Umm... I think that Naruto and his friends should go outside for this. I'll tell you guys soon, but... there's something I need to tell the others first. And take Akane with you, for the same reasons I just gave." Inoichi requested. After the four younger shinobi left the room with Akane, he addressed the remaining jounins and sannin. "I think that when the seal lost power, it had to have affected the Kyuubi's mind. Her body, no promises, but definitely her mind."

"How was it affected?" Shizune asked.

"Well, I saw nothing of the Kyuubi's life before it... sorry, she was sealed into Naruto. Just the sharingan wielder, then nothing else. It's like she's mentally started her life over again. Maybe that's why she looks like a child, because mentally she is one now. But that's not the weirdest thing."

"What is, then?" Anko asked.

"There were no memories before being sealed, however, the Kyuubi had many after being sealed. And if I had to guess, they were actually fragments of Naruto's memories, but she was remembering them as if they happened to her instead." Inoichi explained.

"Why would that happen?" Ibiki asked.

"Maybe it has something to do with the connection between them." Yamato offered. "Or maybe the fox has been watching everything in Naruto's life all along. I don't know, but whatever the cause, how bad's the damage Inoichi-san?"

"Somewhat bad. She remembers several bad times, maybe a few good times, but it's mostly like she has amnesia. The best memories are mostly impressions she's got on people Naruto has met before, and even then she doesn't actually know or remember them, just has a feeling about them based on what Naruto best pictures about them." Inoichi explained as best he could figure it.

Tsunade didn't like the sound of this. The Kyuubi was basically a blank slate now from the sound of things and she would go by Naruto's judgment on most people she met and most situations she got into. Tsunade had to make sure Naruto wouldn't mess this up. "We should keep her here overnight for some more examinations, just to confirm your theory Inoichi. I'll go get her and tell the others they can go home if they want." Tsunade left the room and did just that. She was actually expected a bit of a fuss on this, but the four let her do what needed to be done and wanted to be told the results tomorrow morning. With that done, Tsunade went back into the room where they were getting ready to give Akane a physical. And she was fighting back like an animal when they tried to pin her down.

'This is going to be a long night.'


	5. Chapter 5

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Lee would also have a weapon. Not sure what one, but he would have something. Surely Tenten could spare one for him._

Chapter 5: The Fox Gets A Family And Naruto Gets A Burden

Tsunade was sitting at her desk looking over some paperwork. For once there wasn't much there so maybe she could finish early and have some much deserved relaxation time. At the moment she was focused primarily on the plan she and the others had formed after evaluating Akane last night. It had taken a trick-or-treater's worth of candy to pacify the fox girl enough so they could actually look over her without Naruto present. Luckily she didn't eat it all at once, and unfortunately she had to fight Anko for some of it. Anko got a good number of scratch marks on her arms for it, and Shizune replied she had once warned the snake summoner her sweet tooth would get her in trouble someday. Anko just grunted and made some rude comment under her breath no one heard.

The papers she held now were regarding Akane's custody and status in Konoha. Tsunade felt that as long as no one unnecessary knew about her true identity, and nothing provoked some sort of memory gain then the young girl was no threat. And if raised the right way she could be helpful to the village. Not a living weapon like Danzou would have planned, but rather a good contributor or guardian to the village. Suna had Shukaku, Kumo had the Nibi and Hachibi, and even Kiri once had the Sanbi, so why couldn't Konoha have the Kyuubi as it's guardian?

Still, raising the Kyuubi would pose a problem, more for Naruto than anyone else as Inoichi pointed out last night.

-Flashback-

"Hokage-sama, may I have a word with you for a moment?" Inoichi asked while Tsume and a now-bandaged Anko looked over Akane who looked ready to pass out and sleep.

"About what?" Tsunade asked.

Inoichi led them to a separate room connected to the main part of the interrogation chamber. "I'm really concerned on how this girl is going to affect Naruto."

Tsunade's eyebrows arched and her arms crossed, showing her concern and interest on the subject. "Go on."

"Now, I don't mean that Naruto's in any danger from her. It's just that having her think of him as her father is going to probably be stressful for him." Inoichi paused to see if Tsunade would ask anything. When she didn't, he continued. "Naruto's never had a real family to begin with, having to think of close friends and others like you as family instead. So ultimately he has no role model or way to base any parenting style off of. He'll have no idea what he's doing. Add that into the fact that he didn't have nine months to prepare for parenthood or a loved one to share the burden with, will only mean that Naruto might not feel up to the task of raising the girl, even if he can't bring himself to not try it."

Tsunade nodded. "You're right. He didn't have time to prepare for this situation. However, he can't ignore it and neither can we. The best we can do is give Naruto all the support he needs. Naruto will officially be declared Akane's legal guardian tomorrow and she will be legally declared his daughter by adoption. Screw whatever denials the council might claim for whatever stupid reason they might come up with. They don't need to know anything else on the subject, just like anyone else not present tonight."

"Hokage-sama, given what I've just said, is that really wise?" Inoichi asked.

"I believe this might be a good thing. Akane is no threat at the moment and I feel if she's raised with care she could be a great help to the village. Not a weapon, but you must admit having the Kyuubi as an ally is much better than as an enemy. And this could help Naruto mature greatly. Team Eight could also benefit from helping him nurture the child." Tsunade told the Yamanaka clan head.

"But what if she becomes like the old Kyuubi?"

"If she's raised like a normal person, then she won't."

Inoichi's eyebrows arched. "So... you want to see how Nature vs. Nurture works for a demon, is that it?"

"That about sums it up." Tsunade admitted. "If this doesn't work and Akane becomes like the old Kyuubi, then she'll be weak enough for us to do something about it. But if this does work, then maybe Naruto can finally know what being part of a family is like. This might even help the gaki and Hinata get closer, especially if the girl wants a mother too. You can't tell me Naruto doesn't deserve the chance to be part of a family."

"No question there, but are you sure he's ready for this responsibility? And with her nonetheless?" Inoichi asked.

"Is anybody ever really ready to be a parent? All we can do is hope for the best and be ready for the worst. Have some faith in him." Tsunade told Inoichi, then went back into the main room, where Akane was now sound asleep and Anko was pocketing a few pieces of her candy for later, thinking nobody noticed.

-End Flashback-

Tsunade did one last check on the form regarding Akane and felt it was sound. All she needed was for Naruto to sign it and then she'd stamp it and everything would be official. And if anybody had any complaints nothing could be done about it, at least nothing that would prove effective. As long as the cover story held then everything should work out for them.

Shizune opened the door. "Tsunade-sama, they're here." She said as Naruto and Team Eight entered the room, with Akane resting on Naruto's back with her eyes only half-open.

"Ah, good. You all may sit down for this if you wish." Tsunade told them with a smile. Five chairs were set up for them already, and each took a seat. From left to right the order went Kiba, Akane who was trying to sleep some more, Naruto, Hinata, and Shino with Akamaru at Kiba's right. "Now, Akane-chan's exam went well, although I wouldn't plan on Anko being near her anything soon, and we can get to business. In the event that anybody asks about her origins, the story will be that you four found her homeless and amnesiac and brought her here, like you originally thought out. This does occasionally happen on missions so none would argue it too much."

"Now, Naruto will be declared her legal guardian and if you'll sign this then you two will be legally father and daughter." Tsunade indicated the form of adoption. "You don't have to do it just now, wait until the end of the meeting at least. We'll say that the girl took a liking to you, which is true, so we felt this was better than placing her in the orphanage. Surely you Naruto would rather she not be there." He nodded firmly, not having good memories of that place.

"Team Eight, while Naruto will be the only legal parent, for now," Tsunade put extra emphasis on 'for now' like she didn't expect Naruto to be a single parent for long. "He will have a difficult time doing this and I'd like you all to be of help to him when you can. Try to make time for it rather than just when you have nothing better to do. And I'm not asking you three just because you know about Akane-chan's secret. Out of all the teams and ninjas we have you three are best suited for this and will be the only ones informed."

"Kiba Inuzuka," The hokage started, looking directly at the named youth. "Your family has the best knowledge on the handling and instincts of children with animalistic qualities. And you can communicate with her in a tongue no one else here can. I'd like for you and your mother to make weekly visits to Naruto's to check up on her and do what your clan does to properly guide her physical, mental, and moral growth. But keep it within boundaries that Naruto can handle and if possible inform him on how to care for her when you're not present."

"Gotcha." Kiba replied. "Kaa-san found the girl cute and would like spending more time with her. Especially if she fights Anko some more. She got a real kick outta it."

'Why am I not surprised?' Tsunade thought, then looked at the young man at the other end of the row. "Shino Aburame, you are needed because of your steady control of emotions and use of insects. I have faith that with the proper guidance Akane-chan will not become a threat to anyone. However, because of her nature she might become volatile and act up. You can help her learn to express herself nonviolently and reduce her chakra in the event it doesn't work. Now don't teach her to act like an Aburame since she isn't one, but your family has the best emotional control in Konoha and I worry she'll need it in the long run. We can't afford to have a demon who acts up recklessly run around our village."

"I understand Hokage-sama." Shino stated.

Satisfied, Tsunade turned to the only kunoichi seated before her. "Hinata Hyuuga, your role will possibly be the most vital, apart from Naruto's." The Hyuuga girl looked confused and maybe even unworthy to hear she would be so important for this. "As informative as the rest here can be for her when guiding her, they are men and thus can only teach her so much. There are some things that only a woman can proper teach a young girl, and that's where you come in. You will be the female role model and mentor for Akane-chan."

Hinata didn't respond, just sat there wide-eyed and holding her breath without realizing it. "Hey, Hinata-chan, is something wrong?" Naruto asked, shaking her arm to snap her out of her daze.

Hinata blinked and inhaled when she heard Naruto. "Ho-Hokage-sama, are... are you s-sure I'm ri-right for this?"

"Do you feel otherwise?" Tsunade asked back. "The girl is close to Naruto and so are you. You're going to be around him often anyways so it should be no problem for you to spare some for her. Or would you rather I ask some other girl to hang around her and Naruto more to-?"

"I'll do it." Hinata asserted herself instantly, cutting off the hokage.

Tsunade smiled. 'Hmm... looks like she understood my hidden message. Sorry to push things for you, but surely you don't want to risk the alternative.' "Well, looks like everything's settled then."

"Not quite, baa-chan." Naruto added. "What do we do if something happens and people see her tails or ears? Or if she turns into a complete fox?" When he finished asking Akane's eyes opened and she looked around, like she knew they were talking about her but didn't quite catch what had been said.

"Glad you asked gaki. Hopefully she'll maintain her human form when in public, but in the event that fails we'll claim that she has a kekkei genkai that allows true transformations rather than henges. As for the fox features, we'll say one of her presumably-deceased relatives was part of a kitsune version of the Inuzuka clan so vulpine traits are the easiest for her to do. Basically we'll be saying she's a special type of human, rather than a fox demon. With any luck people will buy that, but don't bring it up unless the situation demands you have to. Any other questions?"

"Should she be enrolled in the academy?" Shino asked.

"Not yet. The current semester ends in about two months and the next one will begin after the two week vacation so we'll wait until then to do that. If she expresses an interest in attending that is. I feel that she has great potential in that area that can be put to great use, but she will not be pushed into being a ninja. It will be her choice." Tsunade answered. She would have asked the redhead if she was interested, but she looked barely fully awake so said nothing. "Is that all?" Nobody replied. "Very well, then you may go. I'm giving all four of you the next two days off so you can work this change in schedule out amongst yourselves."

"Say, why don't you guys try and introduce Akane-chan to some people? Y'know, get her to socialize and bond?" Shizune suggested.

"Sure. Sounds good." Naruto replied.

"Who am I going to see?" Akane asked curiously, now looking more awake and alert.

"Sleep well?" Tsunade playfully asked.

"Yes Baa-chan." Akane politely answered. "Did I miss anything?"

Tsunade shook her head. "Not really. I'm sure your father and the rest can fill you in on anything you may ask. As for who you'll see, some more friends of your father."

Akane tilted her head. "Like Forehead-san and Pig-san?" The others looked surprised at this while Kiba openly laughed and Naruto and Shizune looked like they were trying not to. "What? That's what the ponytail girl and the cotton candy head called each other."

"Hope you can handle her Naruto." Tsunade told the blonde with a smile.


	6. Chapter 6

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, somebody would ask Sakura if she dyed her hair. They'd probably get their ass kicked for it, especially if it was Naruto, but somebody would ask her._

Chapter 6: Several Jounin Meet The New Uzumaki In Town

Before Naruto and Team Eight left the hokage tower, Naruto had knelt down to face his new daughter. "So Akane-chan, you understand the cover story right?" They had told her what to say if anyone asked about who she was or where she came from.

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm not a fox demon but a normal person. I have some kind of special ability that lets me transform and becoming a fox is the easiest thing for me to transform into. I can't let anyone know the truth since there are many here who might try to kill me if they knew. Or worse, whatever that means. And I came from near the border of Land of Fire with no memories of anything before some kind of attack that killed everyone I knew."

Naruto nodded and grinned. "Very good. You got it right." He patted her on the head. "And remember, outside my apartment, you have to always look human. No fox features where anybody can see you, okay?" She nodded. "Good. Do that and you should be okay."

"So what are we going to do today?" Akane asked.

"How about I introduce you to some people I know? It'll help you meet people and know what to do around them." Naruto suggested.

"Okay. Anybody close to my age?"

Kiba leaned close to Shino. "I hope she means kids cause I don't think we're going to find anybody here several centuries old." Shino simply nodded in agreement.

"I think I know just the guys." Naruto replied. "Let's go look around. We're bound to find someone." He then turned to the rest. "You guys gonna come along?"

"Sorry Naruto, but I have to take a bi-annual Aburame-style physical around noon, so I'm afraid I must part from here. Another time." Shino told him.

"I'll try in the afternoon. I kinda promised my sister I'd do a favor at the vet clinic this morning after this. So I'll look for you after lunchtime." Kiba added.

"I'm available. I'll go with you Naruto-kun." Hinata said happily.

'She sure likes being with Otou-san. I wonder why.' Akane thought.

Kiba and Shino said goodbye and went on their way while Naruto, Hinata, and Akane went somewhere else. "Maybe she should take Akane-chan to a park where she could meet some kids." Hinata suggested. "It would be better for her than trying to find some adults."

Naruto smiled. "Sounds good to me."

About fifteen minutes away from the park they were heading to they ran across Kakashi Hatake, who was predictably reading one of his favorite Icha Icha books.

The sight of his old student with his girlfriend and a child out in public caught Kakashi's attention. "Hi there Naruto. Who's this with you? Are you babysitting or something?"

Akane turned to Naruto. "Is he one of the guys you know, Otou-san?"

'What did she just call him?' Kakashi asked himself.

"Yeah, he's one of my old teachers." Naruto answered the little girl.

Akane looked back at the white-haired jounin. For some reason she sensed this guy was knowledgeable but unreliable. "Why do you wear a mask and hide your eye?"

"Well, my reasons are my own. And I have to keep this eye covered. If I don't it could cause problems for me and others." Kakashi remarked lazily.

"Why? Is it ugly? Infected? What's wrong with it?" Akane curiously asked.

This time she bothered the jounin. Kakashi took great pride in his one memento from Obito and cherished his departed teammate's lose. So he didn't like to hear someone put it down, even if they were a little naive in doing so. "You really want to know?" He asked the girl, kneeling down to her eye level and putting his left hand on his hitai-ate. She nodded.

"Kakashi-sensei, don't." Naruto told his teacher sternly.

"Relax Naruto I'm not going to use it or anything, just show it off a little bit." Kakashi replied then lifted his headband.

Akane looked right at Kakashi's left eye, froze with her own eyes wide, and without warning pounced at the jounin and began scratching the hell out of his face like a rabid animal. Naruto quickly had several clones pull her off of Kakashi and restrain her. They brought her to him, holding her up by her arms, and Naruto and Hinata could see her panting.

"What was that?" Naruto asked, both surprised and even disappointed in the girl for what she had done. Although he had to admit it was impressive to see her beat up the infamous Copycat Kakashi.

Akane caught her breath but was still held by the clones. "Sorry Otou-san, but... when I saw his eye I just... I don't know what came over me. I just had to attack him."

Hinata leaned over to whisper in Naruto's ear. "Remember how she recalls something like the sharingan before she was sealed away? That must be why she did this. She must not like the sharingan."

Naruto wasn't sure what to do about this. If Hinata was accurate, then Akane didn't deserve to be punished heavily. However, she did attack a Konoha nin and she needed to be taught that wasn't a good thing to do. So he had to do something. He dispelled the clones. "Akane, you are going to apologize to this man for what you did. And no more just attacking someone unless they actually try to hurt you first. Got it?" She nodded and made a low growl that only Kiba would have understood. "Good. Now I'll check on him and make sure he's okay first. Stay here with Hinata-chan."

Naruto went to look over his teacher, who was sitting upright with his face in his left hand, as if he had a headache. The wounds looked particularly bad, like he had really pissed off or frightened a clawed animal, which he basically did. But it was nothing a healing jutsu couldn't fix. The thing that caught Naruto's attention the most was that his mask had been literally shredded off, exposing Kakashi Hatake's entire cut-up face. Naruto was kind of disappointed that Kakashi's face was, in his opinion at least, so ordinary.

"What the hell was that for?" Kakashi angrily mumbled.

"Sorry Sensei. I tried to tell you showing her that would be a bad idea. But who knew it would be for you? At least she didn't ruin your smut book." Naruto told him while picking up the dropped Icha Icha book.

"Otou-san, what's 'smut' mean?" Akane asked as Hinata wiped some of Kakashi's blood off her fingers. Hinata noticed that they were no traces of claws anymore, just normal fingernails at the moment, making her wonder if the girl subconsciously did a minor transformation to attack.

Naruto struggled to answer her. "Well, smut is... how you say... dirty stuff that dirty-minded adults enjoy and it's not for kids to know about."

"It's not smut or dirty. It's well-written literature that I thought you'd have more respect for Naruto since Jiraiya-sama wrote it." Kakashi countered while reclaiming his book.

"If it's good can I see it?" Akane asked, holding out her hand.

"NO!" Naruto, Hinata, and Kakashi all yelled.

Akane mock-pouted and crossed her arms. "No fair."

"What's all the commotion?" Gai's booming voice could be heard approaching from behind them, with Lee tagging along. "Whoa, Kakashi, who or what did you anger to wind up looking like that?"

Kakashi pointed casually at Akane. "That girl. Don't get too close. This cat has claws. Literally."

"I'm not a cat. I'm-" Akane was going to say 'a fox', then caught herself and made a quick correction. "I'm just a normal girl."

"You mean you got beat up by a child? Oh Kakashi my friend how low you've fallen." Gai lamented.

"You're his friend? So you enjoy smut too?" Akane asked like it was an everyday question.

Naruto and Hinata could not resist laughing at Gai's shocked face and twitch even if they had been paid to. Even Kakashi had to smirk at that. Lee was just thinking this girl had a very youthful spirit. The older taijutsu expert soon recomposed himself. "Smut is a very unyouthful thing and as a role model for the youth I would never encourage such an interest."

"Listen to him young one. Gai-sensei is the most inspirational man in the world and if you follow his teachings you will walk the proper path of a ninja and a decent person." Lee added like the devoted trainee he would always be.

"Thank you for believing Lee." Gai praised.

"Gai-sensei."

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

The two then did their trademark sunset jutsu to show off their 'flames of youth'. Akane's eyes widened in horror and she immediately buried her face in Hinata's leg since she was the closest person to her. "Make it stop! Make it stop!"

"Cut it out guys you're scaring her!" Naruto shouted at the two men in green jumpsuits.

The two stopped and looked normal, for them, again. "Sorry. We did not intend that. Who is this little girl by the way?"

Hinata coaxed the girl to try and look at Gai again. "This is Akane-chan. She is... she's... a r-relative of Naruto-kun."

"Wow Naruto, you have a relative? Why have we never heard of her before?" Lee curiously asked.

"She just moved to town. Her last home was destroyed so I'm going to be taking care of her." Naruto answered.

"Attaboy Naruto! Taking responsibility like that shows you have a tremendous amount of spirit that will surely help encourage the next generations flames of youth to burn brightly." Gai proudly proclaimed as he did some kind of solo dynamic background jutsu to heighten his statement's value.

Akane suddenly ran off screaming like a kid that saw the boogieman. "No more! No more!"

Naruto and Hinata chased after her. 'I can't believe it. I always knew that Gai-sensei could be a little over the edge, but he actually terrified the Kyuubi herself. Wonder what would have happened if he tried that the day she attacked the village.' He tried picturing Gai doing some kind of show-off thing resulting in the giant nine-tailed fox fleeing in terror. 'Guess they don't call him the 'green beast' for nothing.'

Akane proved just as difficult to catch now as Naruto did to Anbu in his prankster days. Naruto and Hinata shouted for her to stop several times but she either didn't hear them or couldn't think of stopping until she reached somewhere specific. At least she appeared to be running towards the hokage tower so they knew they would catch her eventually. The two almost failed to notice that something had forced Akane to stop running, but backtracked and saw she was standing still like she had been frozen in her run, her body twitching frequently like she was having a very minor seizure.

Naruto and Hinata could see Chouza Alimichi and Shikaku Nara nearby, and the scarred Nara was using his Shadow Possession Jutsu to immobilize Akane. "So can you two tell me why some young child was running like she was about to be killed?" Shikaku calmly asked the two chuunin.

"She saw something that frightened her." Hinata asked, hugging the still immobile Akane to pacify her frantic heartbeat.

"Before you ask, Gai-sensei was being himself. Now can you let her go?" Naruto added.

"I see. Enough said." Shikaku complied and withdrew his shadow. Akane could move again so she relaxed in Hinata's arms, feeling much better. "I always knew that man's overzealous attitude was troublesome."

"And now you can honestly say he frightens children." Chouza added. "Maybe that'll make him limit himself."

Shikaku didn't comment, paying more attention to the fact that Naruto was checing on the girl now. "Hey Naruto, we heard from Inoichi-san that you've gained a daughter recently. This would be her I assume?"

"Yeah. What all did he tell you?" Naruto asked.

"Not much. Just that she and you got close on a mission and she's a lot like you. Does she know any jutsu yet?" Chouza replied.

"Not that I know of." Naruto answered.

"You mean like this?" Akane asked then squirmed out of Hinata's arms. She made a hand sign and a puff of smoke suddenly surrounded her. When it faded, there stood a red-haired nude version of Tsunade standing in a provocative stance with her hair unbraided flowing down her back and smoke covering certain parts of her body. "Does this impress you?" Her voice sounded much more coy than the real Tsunade would ever even try to be.

Chouza dropped his snack and had a nosebleed. Shikaku had no such reaction but desperately looked away. 'Don't do anything. If Yoshino found out otherwise, 'troublesome' wouldn't even begin to describe it. Don't do anything.' Naruto and Hinata just dropped their jaw looking at what the Kyuubi had done.

Hinata leaned closer to her boyfriend. "If I find out you taught her that..."

"I swear I didn't Hinata-chan! I swear to Kami-sama I didn't! I don't know how she knows that jutsu." Naruto nervously defended himself. Akane returned to normal in another puff of smoke. "Akane-chan, where did you learn that?"

Akane blinked and tilted her head. "I... I don't remember. It just felt like the natural thing to do then."

"Don't do that again. It could cause problems for you." Naruto told her. 'Does this means she knows all my jutsus but isn't aware of it? I'm going to have to test her out really soon.'

Akane bowed her head shamefully. "Sorry Otou-san, I'll do better."

'Poor Naruto-kun. He's going to have his hands full with her. Just know I'm here to help you through it all.' Hinata thought.


	7. Chapter 7

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Kiba would wear a flea collar._

Chapter 7: A Few More Introductions Are Made

After saying goodbye to Shikaku and Chouza, Naruto and Hinata led Akane back to the park but a different one than the one they originally were going to go to. Mostly because the new choice was much closer and they didn't want to risk running into Gai again. It wouldn't do any good to chase down the fox girl all over again or have her end up attacking the taijutsu expert like she did Kakashi. It might have been funny to watch, but it would just tell Akane it was okay to attack Konoha ninja, and the two chuunin wanted to discourage that kind of behavior.

When they got to the park Hinata smiled to see her sensei Kurenai out with her two-year old son Sorata. She was sitting on a bench in the shade reading a romance novel and holding her sleeping son in her other arm. "Hello Kurenai-sensei. Good to see you today." Hinata called out, her voice only a little louder than its normal volume.

Kurenai heard her student, turned to face her, and smiled. "Good morning Hinata-chan. How are you and Naruto-kun today?" She then noticed Akane between the two. "Oh, and who's this with you?"

Akane looked at the genjutsu user. "Hi, I'm Akane. So you like smut too?" She indicated the book Kurenai had in her hands.

Kurenai, Naruto, and Hinata all gave the young girl horrified looks. "Akane-chan, not all books are smutty. And Kurenai-sensei wouldn't read that kind of perverted stuff." Naruto told her.

"Thanks Naruto. And no girl, this is just a normal story book." Kurenai added. 'With a few steamy parts thrown in occasionally, but they don't need to know that.'

"S-sorry about that Kurenai-sensei." Hinata apologized.

"No problem Hinata-chan. I take it she ran into Kakashi-san earlier?" Kurenai asked her student. Hinata nodded. "Figures. Why else would she think an adult with a book is a pervert?"

Akane looked over at the playground part of the park and tugged on Naruto's leg. "Otou-san, can I go there for a while?"

"Sure. Go have some fun." He told her with a smile.

Akane ran over and first went on an open swing. She had a hard time getting started so Naruto came over and began pushing her. Hinata sat down and watched the two, Akane smiling and asking to go higher and Naruto pushing her with a small grin himself. Hinata couldn't help but feel pleased watching them both.

"So, care to tell me why that girl called Naruto her father?" Kurenai whispered as she put down her book, marking her place, and reaching into her bag to get out a juicebox for Sorata when he woke up.

"He adopted her. Actually, she adopted him to be more accurate." Hinata answered, never tearing her eyes away from her favorite blonde.

"So that must make you her mother, right?" Kurenai asked, slightly teasing and slightly serious at the same time.

Hinata blushed then looked down and pressed her index fingers together. "W-well... umm... I... umm... I..."

"Relax Hinata-chan. It's okay if you two don't have that kind of bond yet. And judging by how you and Naruto-kun have been, I'm betting soon that you will be called 'Okaa-san' sooner or later." Kurenai said so her student wouldn't blow a gasket or something.

"Y-you... r-really th-think so?" Hinata asked with a blush, and Kurenai could actually see a glimmer of hope in the Hyuuga's pale lavender eyes.

Kurenai smiled and nodded. "Definitely. It'll happen. Just don't rush it. Let her get attached to you first and try to be someone she can admire and look up to, and it'll be sure to happen. Especially if you and Naruto-kun get closer." She stopped to wake up her son and gave him his drink before he got fussy.

Hinata thought about what her teacher had told her and imagined herself in the future. She saw herself sitting on a couch in a house with a blonde baby in her arms that looked just like Naruto. Then the aforementioned blonde entered the room holding Akane's hand, who both said 'hi' to her, but Naruto added 'dear' and Akane added 'Okaa-san'. Hinata smiled and asked them how their day was and Akane answered first, telling about what she learned in school eagerly, making her and Naruto feel proud of her.

Hinata snapped out of her little fantasy and felt a sense of inner warmth. She looked back up at the playground and saw Akane swinging by herself and Naruto standing back to watch her. Hinata smiled and lightly blushed, hoping that vision wasn't just wishful thinking.

Half an hour later Akane was having fun on the slides and Naruto had gone off for a moment to get some bentos for the four of them, Kurenai included. Hinata stayed to watch Akane and talk with Kurenai. While the genjutsu master was giving Hinata motherhood advice, Ino showed up with several of their friends, all of the Rookie 12 except Sasuke and Shino. Ino liked to gossip so she felt the news that Naruto had a child now was too good not to spread amongst friends. And they decided that this was definitely something to see. Kiba, Sakura, and Lee already had seen her, but felt like doing with their friends anyway. Kiba got out of the vet clinic early, Sakura had nothing better to do, and Lee wanted to comfort the girl about Gai, while Shino was still busy at his physical and Sasuke was AWOL.

"Hiya Hinata-chan. Where's the blonde and the pup?" Kiba casually asked as they all approached.

"H-hi everyone. Naruto-kun's on a quick errand now and Akane-chan's over there." She pointed at the girl who was waiting in line to get back on the slide.

"Hey, Akane-chan!" Kiba called out for her.

Several kids looked over at the Inuzuka boy. Akane saw him and decided to go over. "Hi. Did you want something?" She then looked over the rest of the group and in the back of her mind felt a sense of uncertain familiarity towards all of them.

Ino stepped over to her. "Hi little girl. Remember me?"

"Umm... you're Pig-san, aren't you?" Akane innocently asked. Ino looked stunned and Sakura laughed.

"What did you call me?" Ino angrily asked with a tick above her left eye.

"Pig-san. It's what Forehead-san called you isn't it?" Akane asked innocently again.

Now Sakura looked stunned and Ino began laughing. A few of the others did too. It took a moment for Ino to settle down. "From now on call me Ino. But go ahead and keep called her Forehead."

"No way in hell Ino-pig! Girl, my name is Sakura, not Forehead, and you should address me as such!"

Akane tilted her head and backed away from the screaming woman who made her feel uneasy from the start. "O-okay, Such-san."

After that the only ones present not laughing were Akane and Sakura, who bent down to look right at the red-haired girl sternly, almost menacingly. Akane panicked for an instant, feeling like she might be hit for something she didn't understand, so she got her nails transformed into claws just then and crossed her arms defensively in front of herself.

"Listen here girl. I'm Sakura. Got it? Just Sakura. Do I make myself clear?"

Hinata knelt down behind Akane and wrapped her arms comfortingly around the girl. "That's enough Sakura-san. She's just a little kid and they tend to do things like that. No need to go crazy over it." Akane relaxed in the Hyuuga girl's arms, feeling safe and her claws turned back into nails.

"Hey guys. How is everybody?" Naruto could be heard calling out to them approaching from behind with four bento boxes in his hands. "Sorry I don't have enough for everyone." He handed one to Akane, one to Hinata, one to Kurenai, and he gave the last to Chouji since he figured that the husky ninja might go crazy seeing others eat while he himself couldn't. "I take it you all were introduced to Akane-chan here." He noticed how Hinata held her when he showed up and wondered what had upset his newfound daughter.

"Yeah we have. She seems to have a bit of a mischievious side in her." Tenten replied.

"She has your eyes. So the two of you are indeed related?" Neji asked.

"It's a bit of a stretched connection, but yeah, we are." Naruto told him to avoid telling the truth.

"How troublesome. Having this kind of responsibility so soon." Shikamaru commented like he was getting bored.

"Don't give us that, Shika. Can't you say anything positive here?" Ino muttered.

"Alright then. Naruto you're a stronger man than me if you're going to try this." The shirker added to please his teammate.

Everybody there took their turn introducing themselves to Akane, and then started asking her a little about herself. "Hey Akane-chan, you thinking of becoming a ninja too when you're older?" Tenten asked.

"M-maybe. Feels like a good idea." She answered. Due to the fact she had vague fragments of Naruto's memories in her own mind she remembered herself saying she was going to be a ninja and trying to work to be one. But she also remembered times when some ninjas tried to kill her and demean her, so that somewhat unnerved her. "If I do will I be able to defend myself from bad people?"

"Absolutely. Work hard enough and you'll be strong enough to do whatever you plan and dream." Lee told her. The fact that he added no flair to his words meant that Akane only tensed slightly at hearing him.

"Then I'll get strong enough to become hokage someday. That way everybody will respect me and stop putting me down." Akane proclaimed, sounding very Naruto-esque.

Neji gave Naruto a friendly smirk. "If I had any doubt that she's related to you Naruto-san, it's gone now."

"Same here." Sakura and Ino agreed, now thinking he might actually be a good role model for her, to a point of course.

'If I didn't know better I'd swear she really was his daughter.' Hinata and Kiba thought just then.

"That's my girl." Naruto said proudly. 'Whoa, did I actually say that out loud? She must be growing on me sooner than I thought.'

Akane smiled at the orange-loving shinobi and lightly hugged him. "Thanks Otou-san."

Hinata smiled at this little interaction. 'He's really beginning to think like a parent. And I have faith he's doing to be great at it. But still, the girl does need a mom. Wait, hold on. That's for Naruto-kun to decide, not me.'

"Do you have any skills yet? Has Naruto taught you any jutsus or anything?" Chouji asked, trying to be friendly.

"Umm... there's one thing I can already do." Akane said as she got her hands ready for the transformation sign.

"NO!" Naruto and Hinata shouted and reached out to stop her.

Akane looked remorseful, then inspired. "Wait! I just thought of something else." She quickly made the cross sign and flared her chakra. Instantly the group was surrounded by two dozen or so Akane's ringed around them. "So how's this? You like it?"

"Please don't tell me I'm the only one who saw this coming." Shikamaru moaned. Judging from the looks of his friends, he was. 'What a drag.'

Kurenai arched her eyebrows as her son made a sound of glee at seeing the jutsu. 'How could a child no older than eight possibly do a jounin level jutsu like this? Naruto doing it as a genin is one thing, but her? Even if she was a jinchuuriki too this should be impossible. So what is she hiding and do Naruto-kun or Hinata-chan know it?'

"Impressive Akane-chan. Something tells me you'll do much better in school than your father did." Ino praised, teasing Naruto somewhat.

"Any other surprises?" Sakura asked.

"That oughta be enough. Don't wanna show off everything at once do you?" Naruto answered for Akane.

"Hey Naruto-san, if you're that girl's father, then who's the mother?" Chouji asked.

Nobody answered right away, trying to think of the best way to answer that. It was Akane who answered first. "I... don't have one yet. How can I when Otou-san has no mate?"

Kiba turned to face the rest before they could ask any follow-up questions. "She means that since Naruto has no wife or fiancée she doesn't feel right calling someone her mother." He predicted that behavior for her, since she would have to think of Naruto's 'mate' as the 'alpha-female of the pack' and since no girl looked or smelled like Naruto was courting them she wouldn't recognize a mother yet. A girlfriend wasn't the same as 'courting' so it wasn't enough yet for Akane to recognize, at least until she got more comfortable around Hinata.

The overall general response of the group was that they understood what Kiba told them. After that they continued chatting for a bit on random things involving them. When it got late Naruto said he had to take Akane home. They all wished him well and let him and the young girl left before they themselves went off to their own homes.


	8. Chapter 8

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Udon would occasionally blow his nose._

Chapter 8: Seeing Just What The Fox Can Do

Morning came and Naruto woke up early. He glanced into what had just been turned into Akane's room and saw her still asleep. The room wasn't decorated at all and seemed pretty much devoid of flair and personality. All that really was in there was a futon with an orange blanket and a dresser for her spare clothes. But the young girl didn't mind, at least for now. Probably since she was mostly an animal she could live without possessions and not be bothered. However, since she planned on living in a human village as a human, she was going to need some to make it easier and more believable.

The idea got Naruto thinking as he quietly closed the door. 'I guess this is really happening. I... I'm responsible for a kid now. And not just any kid, the Kyuubi herself. Funny, never saw that coming, and I don't think anyone else could have either. But how am I supposed to do this? I never knew my father so how would I know how to be one?'

Naruto stopped in the kitchen to get something to eat for breakfast. He knew he should make something for Akane too but couldn't make up his mind. Ramen didn't seem like a good idea, especially since Tsunade went on about how he shouldn't try to make every one of their meals ramen, no matter how much both liked it, or she'd get rough on him. Some toast and eggs seemed like a good generic way to start off now, then he'd ask her what she liked to eat.

'Hmm... that's another thing.' Naruto continued as he got some milk out for them both, planning on waking her up shortly. 'I should find out more about what she likes, dislikes, fears, and is capable of doing. So far we focused mostly on what she remembers and knows. I feel we've already covered that as best we can. So now... well... I guess get to know her as a person rather than a demon. Heh, sounds a little weird to say that.'

Having a small breakfast ready, Naruto returned to the young girl's room and pulled her blanket back. He saw she was curled up much like a calm puppy might sleep, wearing a set of green pajamas that went well with her red hair and now-revealed fox tails and ears. Apparently she transformed back into her human-fox hybrid form in her sleep, and Naruto wondered if it was a voluntary change or not. If it wasn't he'd have to work on that before she joined a ninja squad. Putting that thought aside for later, he lightly rubbed her shoulder. "Akane-chan, time to wake up."

Akane slowly stretched like a kitten might when it's waking up and yawned indiscreetly. With her eyes still closed she sat on her feet and hands like a fox and used her hind leg to scratch behind her ear. Naruto couldn't help but wonder how she could do that in a human-shape body, and decided he needed to add human behavior and habits to the list of things to teach her. After the scratch and some eye-rubbing Akane looked up at Naruto, still sitting like a fox, and smiled warmly. "Good morning Otou-san. What are we doing today?"

"First, breakfast. Then we're going to one of the training fields for something we need to do."

"Okay." Akane went ahead of Naruto and sat down at the table. Looking over the food, she got curious. "Is there any meat to go with it?"

'Oh yeah, she must have a carnivore appetite. Better keep that in mind from now on.' Naruto thought. "Sorry Akane-chan, I didn't think of that. Next time, I promise."

Akane ate the toast and eggs anyway, not enjoying it as much as she would some meat or at least something meat-flavored. Being a demon, she could eat more things than a normal fox could, but she still had a dietary preference similar to the animal. But she didn't complain about it; at least the eggs somewhat satisfied her animal side better than the bread did.

The two finished eating and left the apartment, but not before Akane transformed back into a normal human girl. Naruto picked her up, placed her on his back like a piggy-back ride, and jumped on rooftops to reach Training Ground 7, the first place he could think of. When there he let her down and did a quick survey of the area with shadow clones to make sure there was nobody there to overhear them. Sensing nobody, he felt better and dispersed them all.

"Okay Akane, you've already showed some real ninja potential and even know two of my best jutsus. What we're going to do is see exactly how much you know so I know what to expect." Naruto explained to her. Akane nodded to show she understood him, looking eager to learn. "Okay, the first thing you showed was my first original jutsu, the Sexy Jutsu, and the second was my specialty, the Shadow Clone Jutsu. Now, how much do you know about those two?"

Akane looked upwards for a second before answering. "The clone one is obviously meant to give someone the advantage of numbers. And the other one is some kind of disabling technique. Am I right?"

Naruto nodded. "Basically. Shadow clones let you outnumber your opponent, have great practical uses like handling paperwork, and work great for the Substitution Jutsu and Transformation Jutsu."

"Shadow clones can be used with other jutsus?" Akane asked, interrupting him. "So... what would happen if you combined it with the Sexy Jutsu, Otou-san?"

Naruto smirked. "That gives you my second original jutsu, which I call the Harem Jutsu. I'm sure you already understand the basics of it so I won't bother explained it to you. Just so you know, that and the Sexy Jutsu shouldn't be used carelessly. They're meant to work against perverts, or 'smut-lovers' as you might call them. Especially dirty old men or closet perverts. Use it the right way and they'll either faint from blood loss or be much more convinceable, meaning you can make them do nearly anything."

"Cool. So that masked smut-lover with the evil eye would be a good target?" Akane asked.

"Most likely. So what else do you know?" Naruto answered then asked.

Akane thought about it long and hard. "Umm... nothing comes to mind right away. I'm thinking of some spinning ball and wind and frogs, but not much else."

Naruto nodded. 'Looks like she has some vague ideas about my jutsus, but doesn't exactly how to use them unless something inspires her. Well, let's work slowly.' He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper that Iruka had given him the other day. "Okay, we'll start off at the beginning. Here's something that I think should be done early, not years later like with me." He handed her the paper. "Put a tiny amount of your chakra into this paper. This will tell us what your elemental specialty is, which will help you later on."

Akane nodded and channeled her chakra into the paper. Naruto wasn't sure what to expect, but he was surprised by what did happen. The paper simply changed colors, with various bright neon hues shifting and dancing around like a psychedelic display before turning completely black. After that, nothing. "So what's the answer?" Akane asked, unaware that this meant anything out of the ordinary.

"Umm... I don't know. It wasn't supposed to do that. Let me see that." Akane handed it back to him and he pocketed it. "I'll ask baa-chan or maybe Iruka-sensei about it. That wasn't any reaction I was told about." 'Is it because of her demonic chakra, or does she have some kind of new element out of the five basic ones?' "Let's worry about that later. For now, show me if you can walk up a tree."

Akane looked over at one of the trees and walked up to it. She turned her fingernails and toenails into claws and dug them into the bark. Luckily she was wearing open sandals with no socks so she could use her feet this way. When she was about five feet off the ground she saw Naruto standing beside her head, his body parallel to the ground and nothing visible holding him in place. "How the hell are you doing that?"

"First off, try not to talk like that. Second, I said walk up, not climb up. You use your chakra for this by focusing it at the bottom of your feet to keep a grip. So try again. And be careful, since it's likely you may fall a few times trying to get the hang of it."

Akane dropped down and landed on her feet. She tried to step onto the tree with one foot with chakra in her foot, then raised the other foot up. She immediately fell onto her back and groaned. Naruto came down. "What'd I do wrong, Otou-san?"

"Try to focus your chakra at the bottom of your foot, but to warn you that's the hardest place to do it. Then try to maintain a steady amount there to keep your grip. Too much, and you push yourself off the tree, too little and you lose your grip. By the way, this applies to rocks and buildings too and hanging upside down. Also, a running head start gives you some momentum to help you go up."

Akane nodded and tried it again, only to fall again and groan. Naruto remembered the time he learned this back at Wave and all the trouble he had to do it right. Letting her learn at her own pace, he sat down and watched her try to climb a tree handless, using her claws rather than a kunai to mark her progress. After about forty minutes she at least made it halfway up the tree with her chakra, which Naruto felt was sooner than he had been able to do the same.

"Hey Boss! Glad we caught you!" A group of voices could be heard from behind Naruto, who turned to see the source. He smirked when he saw Konohamaru, Udon, and Moegi coming towards him eagerly. The trio of 14 year-old genins regarded Naruto as a sort of second sensei to Ebisu and often asked him for lessons. And Naruto was always willing to comply, feeling it was only decent since most of his own teachers just taught him occasionally. Jiraiya had been the most competent, but sometimes even he needed to be encouraged. So Naruto decided that if he had a student he wouldn't act like he only had to do something if he didn't inconvenience him like Kakashi often did.

Akane, after falling yet again but landing with more grace now, turned and saw the newcomers. The only trait all had in common was that they wore their hitai-ates on their foreheads. One was a spiky-haired boy who wore a grey outfit and a long blue scarf which trailed behind him like a tail. The other boy had flat brown hair, a dark grey jacket, glasses, and looked half-awake with a runny nose. The one girl of the trio had orange hair in two gravity-defying points, a purple shirt, black vest, and beige skirt. Akane could see that this group got along with her father so she didn't worry about them being here. Besides, she felt a familiar sense of companionship with them for some reason.

"Hey guys what brings you here?" Naruto greeted the three genins.

"We were hoping you could help us work on our rasengans some more." Konohamaru answered.

"Rasengan?" Akane quietly asked herself, feeling she should know that term.

"You came to the right place then." Naruto said as he stood up. With Jiraiya dead he was now the only person left who could properly use and teach that technique. Before he left Konoha for his long training trip he gave his young fans the basic set-up for doing it themselves, and swore them to secrecy when practicing it. Konohamaru was so far the only one who could actually make a successful one, even though it was small and he needed a shadow clone like Naruto did. Udon and Moegi still were having problems, mostly because they also had a hard time doing the Shadow Clone Jutsu too. "Show me what you got."

Konohamaru made a single shadow clone, his limit for the jutsu, and began working on the spiraling chakra sphere. Udon and Moegi tried to make a clone first, and they could, but the single one each produced only lasted about six seconds before automatically dispelling due to lack of proper chakra amounts and control. They looked at Konohamaru in defeat and awe as he managed to make a softball-sized rasengan, then got rid of it.

"Okay, looks like you need to work on size Konohamaru. You need to build up your chakra levels first for that. Udon, Moegi, you need to do the same, but I've got an idea for you. Why not have you both work on one together instead of using a clone? See if that works." Naruto suggested.

"Would that really work?" Moegi asked.

Naruto shrugged. "Not sure. Never tried it myself. Don't see why it shouldn't."

"Hey are you teaching her too Boss?" Udon asked, pointing towards behind Naruto.

Naruto turned to see Akane with a clone looking like she was trying to create a rasengan herself. So far all she could create was a red glow between her hands and some sparks of chakra, but nothing else. It was like she was trying to will the technique to work but couldn't quite use the proper methods of chakra control. Naruto was surprised to see this, wondering how long it would take her to fully learn the technique and if he should teach it to her so soon anyway.

"She's doing better than us, you gotta admit that." Moegi whispered to Udon, who slowly nodded.

Akane stopped what she was doing and got rid of the clone. She then walked up to Naruto. "How do you do that one, Otou-san?" Three sets of eyebrows went up at this.

"That one's a little too advanced for you Akane-chan. You need to work on tree-climbing first before you could handle that kind of technique." Naruto answered.

"Gotcha." Akane replied before going back to the tree and running up it.

"Care to explain Boss?" Konohamaru asked.

"She's adopted." Naruto simply stated.

"Makes sense." Udon replied.

"Now, tell me, do any of you guys know the water-walking technique yet?" Naruto asked, getting back on the subject of their chakra control. All three shook their heads 'no'. "Let's work on that." Naruto created a clone who led them off to a nearby pond while the original kept an eye on Akane's exercise. Apparently she had his stamina, since she kept running and climbing for hours, getting a little higher each time. He had a feeling she would prove to be an interesting student later.


	9. Chapter 9

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Neji and Tenten would know how to open the gates like Lee can. Try to imagine the Gentle Fist with the gates open._

Chapter 9: An Evening At The Hyuuga House

Hinata was training herself early in the afternoon when Hiashi came into the dojo and took a seat by one of the hanging wall scrolls. "Hinata, come sit down here for a moment please."

Hinata knew there was something he wanted to ask her. The tone of voice said it all. Since he didn't use the stern tone he possessed when demanding an audience, that meant he didn't require her attention for something, just requested it. Hiashi could sometimes be a difficult man to read if you weren't around him as much as other Hyuugas were. Sensing nothing wrong, but still being wary, she obeyed and sat across from him. "Wh-what is o-on your mind Otou-san?"

"Oh, I've heard something rather interesting this morning, from your cousin. It appears that the Uzumaki boy has gained a child recently. A young girl in fact who's a lot like him." He started. Her reaction showed no outward signs of fear, but rather foreknowledge of the situation. "And I was told you had taken a shine to the child as well."

"Is... is that a problem?" Hinata asked with a tiny frown beginning to form.

Hiashi shook his head. "Not at all. Why would you think that?"

"Then what exactly are you wanting to know about? You already know the facts from Neji-nii-san and surely that alone told you how I'm involved so are you just wanting to hear it from me?"

Hiashi was impressed she didn't stutter and she looked more than ready to fight for her right to be involved in Naruto's life. "Actually I was wondering what your thoughts on this and your involvement are."

Hinata looked mildly surprised. "Well, I plan on he-helping Naruto-kun because he needs help with caring for her."

Hiashi decided to toy with her a bit here. "So you plan on being her mother, is that it?"

Hinata blushed and looked away. "Why does everybody ask me that?"

"I didn't hear a 'no'." Hiashi replied, making Hinata blush deeper and struggle to come up with some sort of response quickly. "Don't worry about it daughter. I wasn't being serious. But if I was, then I must say your heart is in the right place." That made Hinata relax. "Why don't you invite her and Naruto-san over tonight?"

"Sure, I'll go ask them." Hinata told him.

Hiashi nodded and rose. As he walked away he decided to have some more fun with her. "It would be good to get to know my future granddaughter."

Hinata couldn't think of a comeback before he left. Deciding to save it for later, she got up and headed out. Before she got to the front door, she ran into Hanabi who was outside practicing with shurikens. "Hi Onee-san. Heading out?"

"Yes. I'll be back shortly."

Hanabi turned away with a telltale grin. "Say 'hi' to my niece and brother-in-law for me."

Hinata rushed out looking like she was going to die of terminal blushing while Hanabi had to decency to hold off on laughing until she was out of sight.

Hinata used her byakugan to find Naruto and Akane, figuring they weren't at his apartment this time of day. Knowing Naruto, he was either at Ichiraku's, the hokage tower, or one of the training grounds he used. She first went to Ichiraku's, where he wasn't, then went to the training grounds since they were closer than the tower. Her byakugan showed that he was working with Akane and three other kids wearing hitai-ates, most likely genins. Akane was trying to climb a tree while the others were trying to walk on water.

Hinata walked into the clearing where she knew Naruto would notice her. "Hi Naruto-kun. How are you?"

"I'm fine. Can't speak for them though." He answered, indicating the others.

Hinata looked over at the tree Akane was practicing on. "How long has she been working on this?"

"About two hours."

"Really? I think she's about where I was when I learned that."

Akane dropped down and got ready to try again, but noticed Hinata was here. "Hi Hinata-chan, what brings you here?" She didn't know how exactly to refer to the Hyuuga girl so she had to use the way her father did.

"Well, my father wanted to invite you both over tonight. He said he wanted to meet Akane-chan."

Naruto got wary. Sure, the Hyuuga head didn't bare him any hatred, but he feared whatever interest he might have in her. "What for, out of curiosity?"

"He... he just said he wanted to get to know her since I would have to be around her to help you out so much." Hinata replied, decided to leave out the jokes her father and sister had made. No sense on making Naruto and Akane uncomfortable too. "So would you two like to come?"

"I don't mind. Could we, Otou-san?" Akane asked.

"I guess. I don't think we have any fancy clothes or nothing like that." Naruto said.

"I'm sure Otou-san won't mind." Hinata told him. Then she got an idea. "Say Akane-chan, there's something I want to ask you." She then leaned over and whispered into the girl's ear. Naruto couldn't hear anything but was very curious.

"Really?" Akane asked when Hinata finished and straightened up. The pale-eyed girl nodded. "Okay then."

"Is this something I don't want to know?" Naruto asked cautiously.

"For now." Hinata answered.

* * *

Evening came and Hinata led Naruto and Akane towards the Hyuuga estate. She was dressed in a black kimono while Naruto wore the most formal thing he had, a black and dark blue version of his normal attire. Akane wore a dark purple dress that Ino had given her and wore a green ribbon in her hair to give her a low ponytail. She looked rather fidgety and unsure of what to expect. Hinata told her not to be afraid and just be herself. Naruto wondered if that was actually good advice or not.

Hinata led them inside where they were greeted right away by Hiashi and Hanabi, both in formal wear, although the former wore white and the latter black. "Hello Otou-san. I brought them here like you asked."

Hiashi nodded. "Good to see you again Uzumaki-san. You look like you've been well. And it appears you have a new acquaintance with you."

"Thank you Hiashi-sama." Naruto replied, trying to stay respectful around his girlfriend's father. He then tapped Akane to get her to introduce herself.

Akane didn't know what to do at first. She barely sensed any familiarity with this man, although his eyes reminded her of Hinata's. For some reason she felt she had to try and get on this man's good side, especially if he knew her father. "He-hello, I'm... Akane Uzumaki. N-nice to meet you."

'She already sounds like Hinata's child.' Both Hiashi and Hanabi thought. They wouldn't say anything like that, since they decided that to be decent and avoid any drama, they wouldn't make any mother references tonight, even in jest. "No need to worry yourself. Just relax. It's not like we're looking for reasons to judge you or anything."

Akane tried to think of something positive to say. "Thanks. I like your eyes. Much better than the evil eye that grey-haired smut-lover has."

"Smut-lover?" Hanabi asked.

Naruto sighed. "She means Kakashi-sensei. Sorry about that."

Hiashi smirked. 'She actually calls Hatake that? And she dislikes his sharingan? I already like this girl.'

Hanabi stepped forward grinning. "Hi. You can call me Hanabi-obasan."

Akane tilted her head slightly. "Why?"

"Just because."

"Okay." Akane stretched out the word as she said it, showing she didn't really understand why. Then something caught her nose. "Something smells delicious."

"Impressive how she can smell the kitchen from here." Hiashi commented.

"She had some relatives similar to the Inuzukas." Hinata explained.

"I see. Well, dinner won't be ready for a few more minutes, so why don't you tell us a little about yourself Akane-san?" Hiashi asked as he led them to the main walkway to sit down and converse.

Akane looked at Hanabi then at Hiashi. "Is there something specific I should call you?"

Hiashi smirked. "How about Jii-san?"

Akane arched her eyebrows. "You don't seem old enough for that."

'I really like this girl.' Hiashi commented to himself. "Still, do you happen to have a better idea?"

"That depends. Are you a pervert?"

This caught the Hyuuga head off guard. "No, of course not."

Akane looked at Hinata who smiled and winked. Akane then looked at Hiashi and made a hand sign. She then transformed into her own sexy jutsu form. "You sure about that?" Hiashi fainted from a sudden nosebleed. "Thought so." She then turned back to normal and winked at a still-smiling Hinata.

Naruto leaned over to his girlfriend. "This is what you whispered to her earlier, wasn't it?" Hinata just nodded.

Hanabi saw the whole thing and smirked like a trickster at Akane. "You're good." She then made a hand sign and the 14 year-old Hyuuga heiress transformed into a nude smoke-covered woman that looked like Kurenai with royal purple eyes and long whispy light brown hair. "But I'm better."

To say that Naruto and Hinata were surprised would be a mother of an understatement. "WHERE THE HELL DID YOU LEARN THAT?" Hinata actually shouted at her sister.

Hanabi, still in the Sexy Jutsu, shrugged and calmly answered. "From Konohamaru-kun. Why?"

Hiashi began to stir and regain consciousness. Hanabi quickly turned back to normal. "What happened?"

"We decided to call you Nosebleed-san." Akane told him, making the rest hold in a chuckle. She saw the look on Hiashi's face and had to hold one in as well. "Just kidding, Jii-san." That made him feel better right away.

A branch house member told them that dinner was ready so they all proceeded into the main house dining room. Neji wouldn't be joining them since he had to eat in the branch house dining room. Already seated at the table were some members of the Hyuuga clan council who all looked at least ten years older than Hiashi did. "Everybody I would like to introduce our guests. I'm sure you already know of Naruto Uzumaki. Joining him is his newly adopted daughter Akane Uzumaki."

"Why would we be interested in meeting her, Hiashi-sama?" One of the older members asked.

"Well, do you not wish to be familiar with our allies?" Hiashi asked. "We are fortunate to be allies with Naruto-san, one of the best ninja we have in Konoha nowadays, and I feel it's only appropriate we try to bond with his new family member as well. After all, anyone who chooses to call someone an ally but refuses to acknowledge them until they can be used doesn't deserve any alliance if you ask me."

A few members nodded with him then looked at Akane. "Hello little one. Make yourself comfortable."

Akane then sat on an open chair and looked at the food available. On the plate was some pork strips, rice, pickled radishes, and yakisoba noodles. There were water glasses and a side dish of sauce to go with the meal. Akane had already been told not to start eating until the rest did and to eat more like the Hyuugas so she didn't offend them, so she just sat and waited for now. Naruto sat next to her and Hinata sat next to him. Hiashi took a seat at the head of the table and Hanabi sat across from her older sister.

Discussion went light for the dining group. Akane would answer whatever question she could, giving the fabricated origin story when she had to, and Naruto would answer when she couldn't. He also had to answer some questions of his own. In both of their cases it was more of a curious questioning than an interrogation, although Akane felt otherwise. She would occasionally ask some questions of her own, like why did their eyes look the way they do and what did they do for a living, and would get answers.

After a few hours Naruto and Akane had to leave and go home. They both thanked the Hyuugas for inviting them and said goodbye.

"Feel free to come back anytime if you want Akane-chan." Hanabi said as they left, liking the girl like her father did.

Akane turned and waved with a pleased grin. "Thanks for the offer. Bye Obasan, Ero-jii-san." She then playfully scampered off with Naruto trying to catch her.

Both Hyuuga heiresses laughed some more at Hiashi's semi-irritated frown.


	10. Chapter 10

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, one Icha Icha book would actually be published, mostly to see what Naruto fans would do then. BTW, just the other day I saw a sign for some new age spa that actually said they offer chakra balancing. Seriously. Too bad I didn't catch the name of the place._

Chapter 10: First Night Without Naruto Around

A few days went by uneventfully for Naruto. He found out in that time that Akane could already read, swim, and do basic math. She couldn't hit a bulls-eye in target practice or write eligibly yet however. She seemed as smart as a first year academy student who hadn't been taught history, jutsus, weapons, or chakra exercises. Maybe a little smarter. If she attended the academy when the next term started, and wasn't treated like he had, then she would be a decent student at least. Maybe not Rookie of the Year, but surely not the dead last.

One afternoon, as Naruto and Akane were having a ramen-eating race at Ichiraku's, they were joined by Iruka. "Hey Naruto. I heard you got a daughter recently. This would be her I presume?"

"Yep." Naruto said with his mouth full of noodles, then looked at the girl. "Akane, say 'hi' to him."

The young girl turned to look at the scarred instructor, not pausing her eating, and instantly felt a friendly, trusting sense of familiarity towards him. "Hi. I'm Akane Uzumaki. You friends with Otou-san?"

Iruka nodded. "Yeah, we go way back. I taught the little troublemaker back when he was in school. Maybe I'll be your teacher too. Just don't be as bad as him, okay?"

"Alright, then I'll be worse." Akane playfully replied with a sneaky grin.

Naruto gave his former instructor a pitying look. "Sorry sensei. There's no stopping her now. Now it's a challenge for her."

'First Naruto, then Konohamaru, and now her? Guess bad things do come in threes.' Iruka thought. "Anyway Naruto, the hokage wanted me to tell you that she's got a mission for you. One that might cause you to be out of town for several days."

Naruto stopped eating, allowing Akane to get ahead of him. "Crap. Hinata-chan's out already with her team. I need a sitter for Akane-chan fast."

"Well, I can cover that part for you if you'd like. It'll let me see what I've got to worry about when she enrolls." Iruka offered.

"You sure it won't be a problem?" Naruto asked.

"Shouldn't be. Sound okay girl?"

"You say something?" Akane asked as she finished off her 12th beef-flavored ramen bowl.

"Looks like she's got your attention span." Iruka commented.

* * *

After being informed about the mission by Tsunade, Naruto took Akane back to his apartment and packed up a few things in a pack for her. He also gave her a key so she could come back if she had to for some reason. Then he brought her to Iruka's own modest apartment. "You be good you hear? Nothing dangerous or inappropriate." Naruto told her paternally.

She nodded. "But I can still have fun, right?"

Naruto shrugged. "Of course. Just don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"Gotcha." Akane nodded. 'That must mean that if he would do it, then it was okay.' Shame he once told her about all the pranks he used to pull one night when she asked how good he was. "Have fun."

He ruffled her hair and and left with his partners hoping nothing bad would happen. Not to Akane, not to Iruka, and especially to Konoha in general.

Akane was sort of unsettled. Due to impressions of Naruto's memories acting as her own, the idea of being alone in Konoha as a young child didn't comfort her. Sure, she was a demon rather than a defenseless human, but she didn't want to reveal that side of her here. The town had a major dislike of fox demons such as herself and if her identity was revealed any chance of her and her adoptive father having a decent life would be gone like shedded fur.

At least the scarred man close by was no threat. If anything he might be a fun target. "So Akane-chan, why don't we go get a snack and you can tell me a little about yourself?" Iruka offered to treat her to warm up to him and find out how to keep her from being bored. A bored Uzumaki was a dangerous thing.

She agreed, and Iruka led them to a dango shop, hoping to get her to eat something besides ramen. When they got there he wasn't surprised to see Anko already there munching on the dumplings, no more bandages on her arms now. Akane saw her too and was the first to say anything. "Hey, it's the crazy candy-thief."

Anko's eyebrows arched and she stopped chewing. "Oh, it's you. What do you want?"

"Whatever smells so sweet here." She answered, already drooling like a hungry animal.

Anko looked to Iruka. "You buying her a treat?" He nodded, and she sighed. "Tough break man. She's got quite a sweet tooth on her."

"Well, Otou-san says he's surprised you don't have diabetes by now." Akane replied non-hostilely.

'You should see her when she's PMSing. She won't eat anything that doesn't come with chocolate on it.' Iruka wisely chose not to say.

Akane turned to Iruka. "By the way, what is diabetes anyway?"

"Ask the hokage that." He told her. He made the order, then sat down on a bench between Anko and Akane. "So I take it you two have already met?"

"Yeah." Anko lazily answered before reaching for another stick of dango. Akane reached for it two and both grabbed it at the same time. Anko glared daggers at the girl. "You'll get yours in a minute. This one's mine."

"I'm not afraid of someone who smells like sugar and snakes." Akane replied, not wanting to relinquish the treat.

Before Anko could do anything, Iruka gently grabbed Akane's hand and made her let go. "Akane-chan, you shouldn't do things like that. What would your father say if he saw you?"

Akane looked like she needed to think it over. "He might say..." Then she suddenly changed into an exact copy of him, without using any hand signs. "No way. This one's mine. Believe it." She even sounded exactly like him.

At first Iruka and Anko were stunned silent, but then neither could stop themselves from laughing. "He would say that, wouldn't he?" Anko said. "Can you do anyone else?"

"Sure." Akane then turned into Anko. "Trick or treat. Smell my feet. Give me something good to eat."

Iruka and the shop owner laughed harder at this one. Anko wasn't laughing, but she was smiling to show she wasn't offended.

"Oh, here's a good one." Akane, as Anko said, before grabbing a dango skewer and morphing into Ibiki. "I'm Scarface. Say hello to my little friend." She held the stick like a kunai.

Anko laughed loudly at this one, and even Iruka chuckled. "Say, can you do Kakashi Hatake?" The shop owner asked as he handed Iruka the treats he paid for.

"Who?" Akane asked, more familiar with her nickname for him than his actual name.

"Grey hair, black mask, nose in an orange book all the time." Anko described.

"Smut-lover?" Akane, now in her normal human form, asked as she bit down on the dango stick.

Anko giggled. "'Smut-lover.' I gotta remember that one."

"Can you turn into other things or just people?" Iruka curiously asked.

Akane chewed and thought it over. "Not sure. I know I can do animals too."

"Really? I'd like to see that." Iruka said.

Akane looked away. "I'd rather not."

"Why?"

"Because the animal that's easiest for me... well, I don't think people want to see it." She sadly answered.

This peaked the shop owner's interest. "C'mon, show us something. Nobody's around to judge you."

"Alright then." Akane then got off her stool and transformed again. In her place was a red fox the size of one of the Inuzuka battle dogs, like Kuromaru. Being careful still, she made sure she only had one tail at the moment. Outside of that, this was her true form, free of all disguises.

"Interesting choice." Iruka said, thinking she had just randomly picked a fox form. Anko was the only one present who knew the truth, and hoped nothing bad would come of this.

"Everybody! There's a fox demon here!" Some civilian passerby screamed from outside the shop, having seen the transformation out of the corner of their eye.

"Quick, turn into a snake." Anko told the fox, who changed instantly into a brown serpent. Anko summoned some and had them intermingle with her.

Several civilians came to the shop entrance. "Where'd the fox demon go?" The shouter asked.

"I asked a few pals of mine to drive it off. So it's gone now." Anko told them while pointed at her snakes.

It looked like most of the crowd didn't care and just left. A few that didn't trust Anko said that the fox was most likely still close by and went to go look for it themselves. Anko recalled her snakes, but told Akane to stay like that and hide in her jacket, just in case someone was watching them. After a moment to avoid looking suspicious, she and Iruka paid for their food and walked away. They made it to an alley where Akane slipped out of Anko's jacket and became human again.

"Thanks candy-thief. I owe you one." She said gratefully.

"Well then, try calling me something else. Something a little more friendly would be good." The tokubetsu jounin stated.

Akane thought it over. "Okay, how about Sugar?"

"Why the hell would you want to call me that?" Anko asked. 'And why the hell would she think I would want to be called that?'

"Well, you smell like sugar, so it was either that or Snake. Would you prefer that?"

"Neither. 'Sugar' sounds so against my style, and I get enough bad people calling me snake-something. How about just Anko?"

"Okat then, Anko-san." The fox girl said.

"Well, I should probably get going. Let me know if you come up with any more impressions okay?" Anko said as she started walking off. They waved to her and she waved back before disappearing.

Iruka led her into his apartment. It was a one bedroom so she would have to bunk on the couch or something until Naruto came back. She said she didn't mind. The two would play a few card games, and apparently Akane was an expert at poker. Probably because she saw Iruka's tongue touch the left side of his upper lip whenever he had a bad hand. Of course if she had any tails visible then she surely would be the one losing. When they finished they watched a comedy on TV and had some popcorn and soda.

* * *

Naruto, Neji, Tenten, and Lee had come to a stop and had already set up camp for themselves. They probably wouldn't reach their destination until tomorrow night at the earliest.

Apparently there was some commotion in a distance town that they had been asked to look into. Neji, Tenten, and Lee could most likely handle it on their own, but Tsunade had reason to believe from the reports that Kashou Ryuutake, the man whose attack released the Kyuubi, was in the area. That's why Naruto was going along, to positively identify him and if possible obtain the sword so Tsunade could have someone examine it's abilities.

"Whatcha thinking about Naruto? You're being awfully quiet for once." Tenten asked.

"Just got a lot on my mind." He mumbled.

"Are you taking to your new responsibilities well?" Neji asked. He had heard from Hanabi about Akane's use of the Sexy Jutsu on Hiashi and still thought it was hilarious. He figured this girl could definitely add some much needed flair to Konoha.

"I guess. I'm just glad she's not so impulsive or reckless." Naruto answered.

"Sounds like her flames of youth burn brightly and justly." Lee commented.

"Well, if you say so Bushybrows. And if they burned any hotter she'd have heartburn."

"Just wait until she becomes a teenager, Naruto." Tenten warned.

'The Kyuubi going through puberty?' Naruto nervously thought. He then pictured Akane screaming about pimples and weight and popularity and other basic adolescent issues. Then he pictured her trying to go out on dates with boys and dealing with the horrors of the female cycle. He inadvertently shuddered. 'I need a mom for her and fast. When Hinata-chan gets back, I'm going to see if I can get the two to bond on their own. A day out together might do the job.'


	11. Chapter 11

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Neji would have tarot as a hobby. Wouldn't that be appropriate for someone so interested in fate?_

Chapter 11: The Foxes Hidden In The Leaves

The next day Iruka had to go to the academy to handle the end of the term, meaning he needed someone to watch over Akane. Since she got along with Anko he asked if she could do it for a few hours. The problem was finding her, since Anko usually was a fairly private person. Why wouldn't she be, considering that most saw her and thought of Orochimaru the most? Anko was a lot like Naruto in that both wanted to be recognized as themselves but if they didn't want to be found they couldn't be. Odd considering it shouldn't be that hard to find a boy wearing all orange and a woman with purple hair.

In the end, Iruka couldn't find her and had to leave Akane at the hokage tower to be watched over for the day then he went to the academy. Now, if Akane was responsible, she would have gone right to Tsunade and Shizune, told them the situation, and awaited the results.

Too bad Uzumaki's aren't known to be responsible. Neither are fox demons for that matter.

Akane waited until Iruka was out of sight and just walked off before anyone noticed she was there. She figured there shouldn't be any problems if she tried spending some time alone for once. After all, her father had done that for many years and survived. And he was a human. She was a powerful bijuu with most of Naruto's imprinted memories. Surely she could handle any trouble that might come along. Besides, she had a strong desire to have some Naruto-esque fun and that was always better when there were no supervisors around.

Now the hard part was thinking of what to do. If she got lucky she might find some stray paint cans lying around. Naruto had left her some ryo to use if she needed to, and she wondered what to do with it after some Ichiraku ramen. Not hungry at the moment, she just walked thru Konoha, looking around and hoping to find some kids to hang out with. Most weren't out at the moment, as they were at school, so she eventually ended up at one of the parks. This one had no playground, it was more of a nature center. The scent and sounds of the forested area made her feel really comfortable and at home. To pass the time, she decided to see if she could find a way to bring some of these scents to Naruto's apartment.

While she walked down the stone pathway she ended up running into Ino who was looking over some flowerbeds. Ino saw her out of the corner of her eyes and turned to greet the young girl. "Good morning Akane-chan. What brings you here?"

"Good morning... umm... sorry, I can't remember your name. 'Pig-san' is all that comes to mind. And I'm looking for things that smell good."

"The name's Ino. And if you want flowers or something you came to the right person. Anything in particular you want?"

Akane didn't respond right away. "How about...? I don't know. Just whatever smells good I guess." Then to toy with the ponytailed girl she added another question. "Know any flowers that smell like ramen?"

Ino didn't know whether she should facefault or groan. "That's it. You need some feminine guidance. Stick close to me and learn a little."

For the next hour Ino tried to educate Akane on flowers and scented herbs. Akane found she preferred the scents of jasmine, roses, and cinnamon, while she greatly disliked mint. She said some rather vulgar things regarding the aroma and Ino scolded her on her use of such language. She also scolded the young girl for trying to drink right out of a small pond that had fish, frogs, and ducks swimming in it. While she was there, but before Ino noticed, Akane made an interesting discovery.

She found a white fox vixen with grey-tipped ears, feet, and tail. It had been trying to get a drink too and kept a curious eye on her from a distance. Akane smiled at seeing a fox nearby and reached out to pet it. It backed away, quietly growling 'Stranger' in canine-speak at her.

"_No threat_." Akane told it back in canine-speak.

_"Human village my territory. You're an intruder."_

_"Why are you here_?" Akane asked.

"Akane-chan? What are you doing?" Ino asked as she brought the girl a small water bottle to drink from.

"Just noticed this cute little fox and I wanted a closer look." She answered.

Ino took a longer look at the fox. 'Hmm... something's not right. A normal fox shouldn't be white in this environment.' Ignoring it for now, she turned back to Akane. "Say Akane, did Naruto leave you a house key?" She nodded. "Good. What do you say we go there and give the place a woman's touch? After all, you wouldn't want to live in a place that reeks of too much testosterone do you?"

"Is that what that smell was?" Akane asked, not realizing Ino was joking. "I thought it was dirty laundry or something."

After a long snicker, Ino led Akane out of the park and back towards Naruto's place. While they were walking Akane noticed that the white fox was tailing them with about two meters distance between them. She stopped walking but signaled for the fox to come closer, which it cautiously did.

_"How many tails do you have?" _It bluntly asked her.

Akane looked intrigued. _"You can tell I'm a fox demon?"_

_"Your scent is clear. I'm a one-tail. What are you?"_

_"I have nine tails. Why?"_

The white fox almost face-faulted. _"Nine? That is impossible!"_

_"Believe it. I'll prove it later in private."_

"Akane-chan, why are you growling?" Ino asked, having to backtrack a bit to rejoin the girl who had stopped walking.

"Just answering a question."

Ino looked confused. "You mean, you were talking to that fox?"

"Yeah. Weren't you already told I could?"

Ino then remembered hearing from Naruto that Akane had some connection to an Inuzuka-like clan. "Oh yeah. Must have slipped my mind for a moment." With that, they kept walking, and the white fox kept trailing them, but now kept closer.

They got to the apartment quickly and Akane opened the door to the apartment. When they walked inside, Akane sniffed the place. "Sorry Ino-san, but I still say that's dirty laundry, not testerwhatever."

"Well, you'd be surprised how much they smell alike." Ino replied comically. "You'll know for sure someday when you have a husband."

Akane gave the Yamanaka a confused glance. "Do you have a husband already? Is that why you know so much?" Ino just blushed and looked away. "By the way, just what is a husband? Does it stink?"

Ino nearly wet herself from laughing at that comment.

* * *

Team Eight was hurrying towards Konoha as quickly as they could, but still taking the long way to avoid being followed. They had something important to tell the hokage, and if they kept at this pace, they should be able to do so next morning.

* * *

Ino had really gotten into fixing up Naruto's apartment to make it more homely for Akane. The fox girl wasn't exactly sure what the problem was. After all, the place was cleaner than a den dug in the ground, so why did it have to be cleaner? Better smelling was a plus, but that was all Akane was really concerned about. Ino covered that by putting the dirty clothes Naruto had neglected into the washer and gotten to some of the dishes. All the while Akane sat down and watched, petting the white fox that had nestled comfortably on her lap now.

However, she had to leave for a brief time to go get her vacuum, as Naruto's needed repairs. When she left, the white fox jumped off Akane's lap and faced her. "Show me your true form." It demanded, revealing it could speak the human language as well as the vulpine one. Akane stood up and transformed without hand signs. In her place was a large red fox the size of a small lion with nine swaying tails. "So you do in fact have nine tails?"

"Is that a problem?"

"There's only one fox demon in existence that has nine tails. Surely you know this." The white fox demon stated.

The red fox shook her head. "Sorry. I don't know anything about fox demons outside myself. You're the first one I've seen. I must admit I'm surprised, since I was told they aren't welcome here."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"I'm living with Otou-san. What are you doing here? And what's your name? Mine's Akane if you didn't already catch it." Akane responded.

"I'm called Sassha. I've lived here all my life, because my mother was killed here when our ruler Kyuubi-sama was forced to attack here. I haven't been able to leave for some reason, and I've wondered if Kyuubi-sama would get released. Okaa-san was pretty close to her." The white fox, Sassha answered.

Akane's ears twitched momentarily. "Kyuubi? Otou-san said that was what I used to be called. Any connection?"

"Hmm... possibly. We'll have to wait until another fox demon comes around until we can confirm anything." Sassha told her.

The doorbell rang, surprising them both. Akane turned back into a red-haired human girl wearing a red shirt and dark blue shorts and answered the door. Standing before her was a young girl her age with long black hair tied in a low ponytail. For some reason she wore a male kimono that was black with icy-blue swirls on her shoulders, black boots with similar swirls on the top of each foot, and an icy-blue obi which held a black sheathed sword on her left hip. The most distinguishing feature of all were the red fang marks on her cheeks. A husky puppy was standing at her right and made a small bark.

Akane smiled to be friendly. "Hello. Can I help you?" A quick sniff of the new girl made her think of Kiba.

"Umm..." The new girl spoke quietly and looked down, rubbing her knuckles together. "Do you... have you seen a small white fox anywhere?"

"You mean Sassha?" Akane asked.

The new girl looked up hopefully. "You saw her? You know her name?"

"Sure. She told me." Akane said without realizing she probably shouldn't have.

"W-what? Sas-Sassha-chan told you? She never speaks to anyone outside the pack." She then noticed the puppy go inside the apartment. "Mino-chan?" She looked over Akane's shoulder and saw her husky next to the white fox. "Sassha-chan?"

"I take it you're out for the day Shiba-sama am I right?" Sassha asked. "Akane-sama, allow me to introduce my partner, Shiba Inuzuka-sama."

"Inuzuka? Are you related to Kiba-ojisan?" Akane asked.

The girl, now identified as Shiba, looked away slightly. "Yeah. He's my cousin. You know him?"

"Yep. He's okay. Probably could use a tick bath or something, but not bad. I heard somebody say he should be neutered, whatever that means." Akane answered nonchalantly. Sassha snickered a bit at hearing that. "Were you at the academy? So are you a ninja now?"

Shiba looked down at her feet now. "Not yet. I've still got several terms to go before that happens. Not that... anybody believes... I can do it."

Akane blinked twice in confusion. "Why is that?"

"I'drathernottalkaboutit." Shiba quickly muttered. "I just came here to find Sassha-chan. I should really get going."

"Can I see you later then?" Akane asked. "I'd like to spend some time with some kids rather than a bunch of Otou-san's friends for once. Please?"

Shiba looked up and blinked several times. "You... actually want to spend time with me?"

Akane tilted her head. "Why does that sound like it's rare for you? Yes, I'd like to spend some time with you and your animal friends. Is that okay?"

Shiba slowly nodded after a longer than normal wait. "S-sure. I would like that."

Akane gave a foxy grin like Naruto. "Great. Meet me at Ichiraku's ramen in the morning. See ya then."

Shiba later left after a polite parting, taking both Sassha and her puppy Mino with her. She was really curious about why some girl she had never seen before suddenly wanted to be nice to her. Almost be friends even. It was surprising, to her at least. But not as surprising as the fact that the redhead smelled almost entirely like a fox.

_Credit for the creation of the characters Shiba, Sassha, and Mino mostly goes to Narnia Moons. They will play a good part in this story later on._


	12. Chapter 12

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, the Ichiraku's would have succeeded in adopting Naruto._

Chapter 12: Trouble And Friendships Brewing

Team Eight entered Hokage Tower and went right to Tsunade's room. Instead of Tsunade, they saw Shizune, since Tsunade was 'attending some personal business' at the moment as Shizune explained. So while they waited for her to finish, they relaxed and took a breather. Shizune immediately noticed how worn out they looked, as if they hadn't stopped moving swiftly in hours.

Tsunade came in, noticed the three shinobi with an arched eyebrow, and sat down at her desk. "So what happened while you were out?"

Shino had become their unofficial representative when informing the hokage over the years so he was the one to answer. "It turned out that the threat was a false alarm. Just speculation and paranoia. However, we did see two men with the sharingan hide outside the city limits. Hinata's byakugan and my insects confirmed this. Both sported the sharingan. And one was in fact Sasuke Uchiha. The other wore an orange spiral mask with only the right eye visible."

If Tsunade had been drunk, this surely would have sobered her up. "You didn't engage either in combat, did you?"

"Of course not. Only Naruto would be that stupid. We figured the best thing to do was tell you." Kiba answered, ignoring the brief glare Hinata sent him.

"Crap." Tsunade mumbled as she rested her chin on her clasped hands. Tonton made a nervous oink in Shizune's arms, who kept a concerned eye on her mentor. "Good job Team Eight. Go rest up and don't return here any earlier than tomorrow morning if you can help it. Dismissed."

"Oh, and Hinata?" Shizune added before the Hyuuga heiress could leave the room. "Naruto's out of the village for a few days. Akane-chan's been with Iruka Umino since then if you wanted to know."

"Thank you." Hinata politely said before leaving.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Tsunade asked her student.

"On which topic? The Uchiha's or Hinata?" Shizune asked. Before the hokage could replied, she shrugged. "Ah hell, the answer's the same for both: Yes."

"Now let's just hope Naruto's willing to do his part and do it the right way." Tsunade commented.

"Regarding?" Shizune asked.

"Both." Tsunade stated.

* * *

Akane was seated at Ichiraku's but she wasn't eating. Teuchi and Ayame asked if she was hungry, but the young girl said she shouldn't eat before the girl she invited showed up. Just a little show of courtesy that Ino taught her the other day. So she passed the time chatting with the ramen vendors, mostly talking about Naruto when he was younger.

"Really? Otou-san didn't always use water in water balloons? What did he use then?" Akane asked.

"Paint, white-out, tomato juice, old milk, and I think he tried urine once on a really nasty carpenter that threw a hammer at him when he was seven." Teuchi casually replied with a small grin on his lips.

"It's amazing he never used ramen broth. After all, he had more of that than water." Ayame commented.

"Yeah, but that would have been a waste of his favorite food." Teuchi added.

"So what else did he do that he didn't tell me?" Akane eagerly asked. Her tails would have been wagging if she had them out.

"Looking for ideas?" Ayame playfully asked.

"No comment." Akane answered, saying what Naruto told her to say if she didn't want to answer something.

"I'll take that as a 'yes.'" Ayame added. "Well, did he tell you about the time he gave the Akimichi's laxatives? Or the Nara's pep-pills?" Akane nodded with a grin. "Okay, how about the time he superglued a rainbow afro wig on the Inuzuka boy, just before school?" Akane nodded again with a light snicker at the mental image. "When he made the hokage's on the monument look like drag queens?"

"What's a drag queen?" Akane asked.

Both ramen vendors wondered how to expect that concept to an eight year-old. "It's... umm... a boy who pretends to be a girl all the time."

Akane tilted her head and narrowed in her eyes. "So... does the Sexy Jutsu make Otou-san a drag queen then?"

"No! Not all all." Both ramen chefs immediately stated, all but shouting. "He would have to do that all the time for it to count." Akane simply nodded in understanding.

Pretty soon Shiba Inuzuka, the girl Akane had met yesterday, showed up with her husky puppy and white fox partners. Akane smiled. "Hi Shiba-chan. Glad you could make it." She didn't verbally reply. "What's wrong Shiba-chan? Cat got your tongue?"

"I'm just... not much for conversation, is all." She told him.

'She reminds me of someone, but I'm not sure who. Wonder why?' Akane thought. "Don't worry about it. Just say whatever comes to you. That's what Otou-san does."

"Not exactly the best example to use, Akane-chan." Teuchi commented. "Now that your friend's here, want some ramen?"

"Want some? It tastes great." Akane asked Shiba.

"No thanks. We ate before we left. Thank you though." She answered.

"Okay then, so is there somewhere specific you like to go to?" Akane asked.

"Umm... somewhere private. I don't feel comfortable around crowds." Shiba was still unsure why this strange girl who hadn't even been in school was interested in being with her, but she did want some human companionship so she didn't argue.

"Alright. I know just the place." Akane said with a smirk, then led them away from the ramen shop.

* * *

Naruto and Team Nine had reached their destination and already gotten to work. The head ruler of the town had informed them that some unidentified person, possibly more than one, had been trying to steal a life-size statue of a heroic historical ninja carved from one ruby and soon succeeded. Whether or not the ruby had been made naturally or by some crystal-element jutsu was still debatable, but either way it was one valuable monument. What really got to the ruler was a ransom scroll the thief had sent him. This is what it said:

_"If you want it back, you will have Konoha-nin bring two million ryo to the mapped location. Failure to do so by the end of the week will result in the destruction of the statue. And to prove I'm not bluffing, look at this."_

Attached was one of the fingers of the statue, broken off but unmistakable, next to a map that led to an open plateau.

"Think this is the guy Hokage-sama warned you about, Naruto?" Lee asked as they headed for the designated place.

"Either way, he's gonna be in trouble." The orange-clad ninja answered. "He gave us the finger. We can't ignore that insult." Everybody groaned. "C'mon, that was a good one."

They soon came to a stop on top of the plateau and looked around. Neji placed down a box holding the money. "Okay, you've got what you demanded. Now honor your end of the bargain." Of course he and the rest were fully prepared for the other party not to.

That was apparently a good idea, as something came flying at them right away.

* * *

Akane led Shiba and her animal companions to the top of the hokage monument, stopping on top of the fourth's head. "Wow. What a view." Shiba exclaimed as she looked over Konoha.

"Isn't it something? Otou-san took me up here a few days ago. He said this is his favorite place to go."

"I can see why. If it was night I'd be tempted to howl." Shiba said, sounding the most relaxed Akane had ever heard from her.

"Feeling better, huh? Not so gloomy anymore?" She commented casually. Shiba didn't respond, but she looked a little less enthusiastic now. "Why are you like that anyway? I've seen two Inuzuka's already and both were a hundred times more feral than you."

"I've... got some problems with the... elders of my clan." The Inuzuka girl answered, rubbing her knuckles together nervously and keeping her back to Akane. "They... have standards I don't meet."

Akane sat down on the ledge and motioned for Shiba to do the same, which she did with her puppy Mino on her left side and her fox Sassha on her right. There was about a meter's distance between the two girls, with Akane at Shiba's right. It looked like the latter wasn't going to say anything more, but then her fox partner nudged her. "Shiba-sama, she'll uderstand. You can tell her what's troubling you."

"Y-you sure?"

Sassha nodded. "Yes. This girl has a bond with foxes so I can sense she means well."

Shiba settled but then looked at Akane. "The Inuzuka clan elders consider me a disappointment because I can't do their jutsus well. Even though I've got two partners and can do kenjutsu well, they don't like the rest of my skills. So they tell me I can never be a good ninja and may make me a stray because of it."

"And that makes you feel like you're not worth anything, doesn't it?" Akane added. She might be basically an 8 year-old in body and mind now, but as the Kyuubi she had been around for a long time. So occasionally some wisdom, insight, and maturity uncharacteristic for someone her age would slip out, even without her realizing it.

"Sort of." Shiba asked. "I do have a skill that would make them change their minds, but... I'd rather they not know it. At least not yet." Shiba told the Uzumaki girl.

"I see. Bet it's a great one that'll make them sorry for doubting you." Akane commented confidently.

Shiba gave her a confused look. "Y'know, I kinda expected you to ask what it was."

Akane laid back and looked at the clouds. "I admit I am curious, but I'm not gonna make you tell me. I've got a big secret myself I'd rather no one else know." After a moment, she got an idea. "Hey, wanna spar? For fun?"

"Know any jutsus?"

"Some Otou-san taught me. I think some pervy old guy taught me too, but I can't be sure. My memory's been kind of hazy since some guy with a sword hit me."

"Who's your Otou-san?" Shiba curiously asked, scratching an itch behind Mino's ear.

Akane smiled. "His name is Naruto Uzumaki, the next hokage. Believe it."

Shiba gasped then jumped right up. "Your father is _the _Naruto Uzumaki? The man who saved us all from Pain and the treacherous substitute hokage?"

"You've heard of him?" Akane asked, surprised since this was the loudest this girl had been so far.

"Everyone has! He's the best ninja we have in this town! And you're gonna be able to learn everything he knows and be as strong as him someday? You are so lucky! I'd lease myself to a cat for that chance!"

"I can get it for you if you really want it." Akane said.

Shiba blinked several times and looked like she believed this was some sort of genjutsu. "Really? Why?"

"Because it means so much to you and I'd like you to prove those stupid elders wrong." Akane answered kindly then stood up. "So whaddaya say about that spar?

Shiba had some small tears in her eyes. "Thank you so much Akane-chan." 'A chance to train with my idol? Hell yeah! Even Hana-sensei would be proud of that opportunity.' Shiba admired Naruto like how Tenten admired Tsunade. She was as excited about this chance as Konohamaru and his pals had been when they got it. "And you're on." She added, taking on a fighting stance.

"Wait. What about these two?" Akane asked, pointing her thumb at Sassha and Mino.

Shiba looked at them both. "You guys mind staying out of this one?" Both barked 'no'. "Okay then. Maybe next time you'll join in." She turned back to Akane. "Ready?"

* * *

"Do you think we should let them know we're here?" Hinata asked Kiba as both hid in the trees, watching the two girls duke it out playfully. She had used her byakugan to track the girl when Iruka told her she had left his apartment in the morning to meet someone.

"No way. I haven't seen Shiba-chan this fired up ever. Hana-nee-san would be proud." Kiba replied. "Let's let my cousin and your daughter enjoy themselves for a bit."

Hinata blushed, but wasn't that embarrassed by her teammate's remark. "Sure. Sounds like a good idea."


	13. Chapter 13

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Sasuke would have an allergy Naruto could take advantage of in his pranks. I dare you to tell me that wouldn't be something you'd want to see._

Chapter 13: An Eventful Day For Both Naruto And Hinata

The group of Konoha shinobi ducked as something flew over their heads, dangerously low. When they stood upright again, they saw it was coming back at them. Neji got in front of the unidentified object and did a Rotation, stopping it and making it fall on the ground. Naruto saw it was the boomerang sword that had cut his seal. Suddenly the handle had a soft yellow glow and the whole weapon glided across the dirt towards where it came from. They looked and saw Kashou Ryuutake, formerly of Kiri's Seven Swordsmen, who's chakra-glowing hand caught the sword.

"Nice. Some Konoha bodies to carve. Don't expect to dodge again." Kashou stated before getting ready to throw his weapon again.

Naruto and the others tried moving into a better defensive position but found they could barely walk. All four looked down and saw that their feet were being held down by strands of sky-blue hair coming up from out of the ground. Lee was strong enough to tear it away from his ankles and Tenten used a kunai to cut it away from her. Neji meanwhile couldn't use his gentle fist against something without chakra points and Naruto tried to rip it off the hard way.

Kashou threw his sword at them expecting a perfect hit. Lee jumped at it and hit it dead center from above with a kick, making it impale in the soil. More hair burst out of the ground dislodging the blade and trying to impale Lee. He dodged, but it managed to wrap itself around him and hold him in place. The same thing almost happened to Tenten, but she cut with away with a sword. When it tried again, she slipped on some discarded hair and fell off the plateau.

Kashou retrieved his weapon but didn't throw it at anyone. Instead he just smirked at seeing his prey tied up. "Now which one to kill first?" He scanned them over and rested his eyes on Naruto. "Hey, didn't I already fight you? You got away alive? Okay then, you're first."

Naruto then created twenty shadow clones and had them attack the swordsman. His sword cut thru four of them right away, but the rest ambushed him and did an Uzumaki barrage. Before he fell, Kashou threw his sword at the still tied up Naruto, making a lethal hit. A sudden poof of smoke revealed it to be a shadow clone Naruto had done a substitution with. Without his weapon at the moment, the real Naruto fought Kashou while two clones worked at cutting Neji and Lee free of the strange hair.

Tenten used two sickles to get a hold on the wall of the plateau, then curiously looked to see just how far the drop down was from where she hung. It was about fifty meters, and she noticed a small outcove with a young boy with sky-blue hair sitting down with his hands making a strange hand sign. It looked like he was praying but his fingers forked at the middle and ring fingers on both hands. His hair was digging into the earth behind him so Tenten knew that this was the source of the hair. She dropped down onto the ledge, startling the boy. At that moment the hair holding the others slacked.

"Please do hurt me. It's not my choice to do this." He pleaded.

"Then why are you doing it?" The kunoichi asked.

"A long time ago in Kiri, someone discovered a way to cure baldness. Anyone who took the medicine would never have to worry about going bald. The problem was that the hair never stopped growing and it grew too quickly, especially when someone used their chakra. Soon users would either be crushed by the weight of too much hair or they would starve to death since the hair takes so much nutrition from the body. My clan however could withstand the strain on our bodies so we became the only ones to use the medicine." The boy started to explain.

"We even found ways to put our chakra into our hair and use it in combat. It's like we have an extra arm or something. And we found a way to seal the effects so the hair grows at a much slower rate." The boy then showed her a small red ribbon with ink on one side. "When I wear this, my hair grows normally. But everyone in my family was killed but me, and Ryuutake is the only person left who knows how to make this seal if something happens to this one. I don't like working for him, but if I don't then I'll have to cut my hair five times a day just to stay alive."

"Can I see that for a moment?" Tenten asked. The boy tensed up. "Kid, if I was going to do something bad wouldn't I have just taken it? I know a few things about seals so I'm curious about this." The boy then reluctantly handed it to her. She took a look at the design and cjakra networking, then snorted. "Kid, this is a basic seal, not too different than the ones I use with my weapons. There are plenty of people who could make this for you."

The blue-haired boy looked amazed. "Ryuutake isn't the only one? I... I don't _have_ to follow him anymore?"

"Exactly."

The boy suddenly hugged her. "Thank you. Sorry for the attack. I'll release your friends now." He then made the dragon, tiger, bird, and dog signs then finished with the forked prayer sign. "Ninja Art: Hair Dragon Jutsu."

Back on top of the plateau, Naruto and his clones were brawling with Kashou Ryuutake. Neji and Lee had gotten free and were ganging up on him too. Kashou used his sword to block about half of their hits and get rid of Naruto's clones as best he could. He thought things were looking bad for him, until he saw all the hair rise again looking ready to strike. "Ha. Now you're in for it." It then molded together to look like a fierce dragon, making Kashou smirk. It lunged, but it passed everyone and caught the swordsman in it's mouth. "What the hell? Noburo what are you doing?" The dragon then bit down on him, and apparently it hurt worse than it sounded. The dragon then dropped Kashou, who landed in a mash of hair that wrapped around him tightly, turning him into some sort of furball mummy. He wasn't going anywhere.

"That was odd." Neji stated. Then he went to go check on Tenten, feeling very relieved to see her well and unharmed.

A few moments later everyone was introduced to the young boy named Noburo Sentaka. Tenten cut his hair to a reasonable length and helped him put his seal ribbon around his scalp. They heard his story and felt bad he had been tricked into working for a killjoy. They checked him over due to protocol and found all he had on him was a scroll containing various tool his family used designed to work with their family style of combat. Such tools included poisonous shampoo, acidic conditioner, and cement-like mousse, along with normal hair care products too and various dyes. There also was a sword that looked like half of a pair of scissors and some ordinary smoke bombs.

The shinobi group took Kashou Ryuutake to the Fire Daimyo to go to trial, after returning what he stole to the rightful owner. Noburo was spared mostly since he was considered an unwilling accessory, but he still had to have something done regarding him. Since he came from a ninja clan the daimyo told the four Konoha ninja to take him to Konoha and have the hokage decide what to do regarding him. They agreed and thanked the daimyo, then asked to take Kashou's sword back with them in regards to Tsunade's orders. It was allowed, and the four went home bringing along someone extra, not sure what was going to be done about him.

* * *

Hours after Akane and Shiba had finished their little playful spar, she and Hinata were out walking. The Hyuuga heiress and Kiba had made themselves known to the young girls after they finished and congratulated both on their skills. Kiba was especially glad, since he heard that Shiba was barely any good at what she did. His sister Hana, Shiba's tutor, said otherwise, but this was the first he had actually seen her talents. The young Inuzuka girl blushed and lightly grinned at the praise.

After a while the two Inuzuka's left for home. So now Hinata was watching over the Kyuubi girl by spending some quality time together. At the moment they were swimming at a secluded lake after they got Akane a swimsuit and Hinata had to go get her own. Akane wore a bright red one-piece suit while Hinata wore a black bikini, the only one she had. Normally she was too shy to wear anything but a one-piece, but with just Akane here, there was no real problem.

Hinata tried teaching Akane how to swim while they were there. Akane could apparently already do dog-paddle style by instinct, but no other way. Hinata tried to show her the broad stroke, which Akane could do for a few motions but always reverted back to dog-paddling without even trying. So instead she decided to just let the fox girl have fun in the water and join her. A splash fight was inevitable.

To relax and build up a tan, the two eventually floated on their backs in the water. It was very peaceful. "This is nice, isn't it Hinata-chan?" Akane asked.

"Yes. Very." The Hyuuga girl answered, secretly wishing the girl next to her would call her 'Okaa-san' instead.

"Hey, Hinata-chan, I've... been wondering something?" Akane asked, a slight tone of uncertainty in her voice.

"About what, Akane-chan?" Hinata asked, turning her head a little to look at her better.

"It's stupid, but... I can't help but wonder... do you think I might look more like you when I'm older?"

"More like me? How?" Hinata asked.

Akane blushed and looked away. "Never mind. It's nothing."

Hinata stopped floating on her back and swam to face the young girl. "Come on, tell me. Or would you rather ask your father?"

Akane blushed. "You know, would my body... well, be more like yours?"

Now Hinata was blushing too. "A... Akane-chan, I'm not sure. M-maybe, maybe not."

Akane looked up at the sky. "I sure hope so. I sure don't want to look like the cotton candy head in the future."

Speak of the devil, for about twenty seconds later Sakura came into view wearing a pink robe. Akane sat up in the water and looked her over. "You look like a Pepto Bismal bottle right now."

Sakura was really irritated at hearing that. "Don't you have any manners at all? Wait, why am I asking that? You've got Naruto as a role model." It was a shame that for her insulting Naruto was such an old habit.

Hinata and Akane narrowed their eyes at her. "Naruto-kun is a terrific role model for her, Sakura-san. The best she could ask for. Don't judge him so quickly."

Sakura sighed. "You're right. Sorry you two."

"Wow Hinata-chan. You just tamed the pink panther." Akane playfully commented, making Sakura's eyebrows twitch in annoyance. Ignoring it, she took off her robe, revealing a green bikini and dipped into the water. Akane looked at her wide-eyed. "Wow. Your chest is even flatter than I thought before. Now I _really _hope I look more like Hinata-chan when I'm your age."

That set Sakura off, making her swing her arm out to intimidate the young girl. She planned on missing so she could scare the girl into being more respectful. However, Akane didn't know that so she dodged then bit the Haruno girl on her arm hard. Sakura screamed then instinctively swung her other fist and hit the young girl in the face before she realized what she was doing. Akane was thrown back to the other side of the lake.

"AKANE-CHAN!" Hinata shouted, feeling a rush of what she felt was maternal concern for the girl and swam to the girl.

Sakura was shocked. "Oh crap." She swam to check on the girl too. If anyone heard about this, she would be in so much trouble it wasn't funny. Hinata pulled the girl into a hug and soothed her. Sakura tapped her cheeks lightly. "Hey. You okay?"

Akane's eyes slightly opened, just enough to see a lot of pink. Acting of instinct, she pounced out of Hinata's arms and started scratching Sakura's face like she had done to Kakashi some time ago. Sakura yelled and swam away as face as she could. Akane calmed down, and Hinata had her rest in her arms. "Akane-chan, you and I need to have a talk about how to act around people."

"She started it." Akane defended herself.

"She started the hitting. You started the trash talk. Be nice and apologize to her." Hinata told her, even though deep down she was immensely proud of the girl for defending herself.

Hinata led Akane back towards Sakura, who had washed any blood of her face and was applying healing jutsus to the cuts. "I'm sorry Sakura-san. I shouldn't have said those things to you."

Sakura shrugged. "Alright, apology accepted. And I'm sorry for hitting you."

"Thanks." Akane said.

"Now, what do you say you, me, and your mom forget it and have some fun?" Sakura asked, making Hinata blush like that always did.

Akane tilted her head. "Who do you mean?"

"Hinata-chan, silly girl. Who else would be your mother if Naruto is your father?" Sakura replied.

Akane turned to briefly look at the Hyuuga heiress. 'Well, Otou-san does favor her. And if she is my mother, then maybe I will look more like her when I'm older. Maybe she'll mate him then sooner or later.' "What kind of fun did you have in mind?"

After a lot of splashing, diving, racing, and overall aquatic goofing off, the three girls had their fill, dried off and headed home. Akane had to go back to Iruka's for the night, but hugged Hinata before they parted. "Goodnight, Akane-chan."

"Goodnight, Okaa-san." She whispered.

Nothing could remove Hinata's grin from her face that night, not even a crowbar.


	14. Chapter 14

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Shizune would be able to summon slugs too. Hell, maybe she actually can and we haven't seen it yet._

_Sadly, internet access has become pretty restricted for me. Updates will have to be sporadic from now on. I will try to make them weekly if possible, but no promises. Little more drama than humor in this chapter, but I'm sure you'll like it._

Chapter 14: A Shocking Truth For The Kyuubi

Normally when Hinata woke up, she would see if somebody wanted her to do something or if they needed her for some reason. She tended to feel that since most Hyuuga once thought of her as a failure in the clan, then she could make up for it by trying to be useful whenever necessary. Most of the time she didn't even like leaving the estate without making sure that nobody had reason to keep her around, unless a mission came up. To her it was only common courtesy. But today, Hinata just got up, dressed, and left without doing this. All because she had something in mind for today that she didn't want anyone to try and delay.

Today was a day to spend some time with her new daughter, Akane Uzumaki.

Hinata felt really prideful and somewhat odd to call the young girl that. Prideful because she always wanted to have a family with Naruto and now she couldn't help but feel she had it. Odd because it was sooner than expected and the child wasn't exactly what she had in mind in the beginning. Hinata didn't mind that Akane was the Kyuubi, but calling the most powerful demon known to man your child would make any normal person feel weird.

But it didn't matter. The young girl adored the same blonde the Hyuuga heiress did, in a different way of course, and now chose to call said heiress her mother without being told to. And she had the same spirit as Naruto when he was a kid and her family already approved of any bonding between them. How could Hinata not like her?

Hinata arrived at Iruka's place and knocked on the door. Akane answered it rubbing the sleep out of her left eye. Hinata suppressed an 'ahh' at seeing her wear bright orange pajamas. "Okaa-san, glad you came." Akane said, still sounding tired.

Hinata reached down and hugged the girl. "What do you say the two of us go have a day to ourselves? A normal mother-daughter day?"

"Sounds good to me. What are we gonna do?" Akane asked after a yawn.

Hinata let go and shrugged, but stayed at her eye level. "We'll play it by ear. More fun that way."

Akane nodded then grabbed some clothes out of her bag and went into the bathroom to change. When she came out, she wore a lavender t-shirt and beige shorts and looked ready for anything. "I'm ready when you are, Okaa-san."

Hinata left a note so when Iruka woke up he'd know why Akane wasn't there, then both went out to have some fun together. When they got out, the first thing Akane commented on was that she was a little hungry. Hinata felt she could go for some breakfast too, but didn't know where to go. Lucky for both of them Ichiraku's opened early for Naruto and friends of his. Hinata wasn't sure it was a good idea to encourage any ramen fanaticism for the girl, but decided that with Naruto for a father, it was probably a lost cause.

Teuchi was wiping down the counters and getting the cooking utensils out when he saw the two girls approach. "Ahh, good morning you two. What brings you here?"

"Let's see. You sell food, and I'm hungry. So what do you think brings me here jii-san?" Akane sarcastically remarked.

Teuchi chuckled. "Y'know, Naruto once said that exact same thing to me years ago. You get more like him every day Akane-chan."

"I'm taking that as a compliment."

"Good." Teuchi and Hinata said.

Akane looked confused. "What do you two mean by that? Would most people take it as an insult?"

Hinata and Teuchi exchanged a concerned look before looking back at the little girl. "Well, Hinata-chan, awhile ago that's exactly what would have happened if someone was compared to Naruto-kun."

"Why?"

Hinata sadly sighed and looked down at the counter top. "L-let's just say... for years... few people liked your father. He had few friends and no family."

"Why?"

Hinata didn't know how best to answer that. So Teuchi butted in. "Didn't he tell you this already?"

Akane shook her head. "Otou-san told me that his childhood wasn't great, but mine won't be as bad. I figured he must had been okay back then if he wasn't complaining about it. Wasn't he?"

Hinata and Teuchi exchanged another look. "Not exactly." The ramen chef answered. "For years this was the only place where Naruto wasn't grossly overcharged and/or given rotten food. Most of the time Ayame and I had to go grocery shopping for him."

Akane blinked several times. "What?"

Hinata sadly nodded. "It's true. Most of the merchants treated him worse than a leper and tried to kill him on sight. When he was just a kid your age and even younger than that. And no one except me would ever stop to just visit him when school was done."

Back in the beginning of the academy, Hinata at least had the courage to be friendly with the orange-loving blonde during free time and the end of the day. No other kids would do that, much to her disgust but also delight, meaning no one would bother them. Naruto and her were good friends back then and that was where her crush on him started. Of course Naruto just saw her as a friend at that time and didn't want to risk ruining it with something like a possibly unrequited crush of his own. And even when they got out of the academy, Hinata would make time to be with him, even though he didn't recognize her feelings and sometimes thought she had some weird habits. But a weird friend is better than none at all, and a part of him had always cared for her more than any other. This was a big part of why when she admitted she had fallen for him that he wanted to give a relationship a try.

Akane looked mad. "Why would people treat him like a leopard?"

"Leper, not leopard. It's a very sick person you don't want to get close to." Hinata corrected. "And people treated him like that because they were upset about something and blamed it all on him."

"What 'something' was it?" Akane asked.

Hinata didn't want to tell her, but Teuchi saw no problem. "The Kyuubi attack eighteen years ago."

Akane paled and looked like she had seen a ghost. "The what?"

"You didn't hear about it yet?" Teuchi asked. "Well, this village was attacked by the Kyuubi eighteen years ago, and almost everyone blamed your father for it. They even went so far as to claim that he was the fox demon itself, and they made his life hell because of it. But luckily everyone knows better now." Ever since the Pain invasion the Sandaime's law regarding Naruto's secret was repelled. The one regarding his heritage was still in effect only to keep Iwa from doing anything to him for now.

Akane slumped and looked like she wanted to cry. "Akane-chan, are you okay?" Hinata asked, reaching out to pat the girl's shoulder. Once she did, the young girl flinched and ran out of the shop in a hurry. "Akane-chan!" Hinata shouted and gave chase.

It took lots of effort to catch up with Akane, and that only happened because she just didn't want to run anymore. Hinata caught up to the fox girl on top of the hokage monument, atop Minato's head, just where Naruto would usually go to be alone. Hinata could see the girl curled up into herself crying and looking over the city. Hinata came up and pulled her into a comforting hug, which the little girl didn't refuse.

"It's all my fault." Akane muttered.

"Don't say that." Hinata gently scolded.

"How could it not be?" Akane argued. "You heard him. I attacked this village and Otou-san's the one who got hurt because of me. He didn't deserve it. And people did it because of me. Of course it's my fault."

Hinata tightened her hold and stroked the girl's red hair. "No, it's not. The only ones at fault are the ones who hurt your father because they were afraid and wanted to blame someone. Sometimes people are just plain stupid, Akane-chan, and don't see things clearly."

Akane sniffled. "Okaa-san, they hurt Otou-san because they wanted to hurt me, didn't they?" She nodded. "So it really is my fault he suffered. Maybe he'd be better off if I wasn't around."

Hinata moved the young girl's face so they made eye contact. "If you were to leave all of a sudden, then Naruto-kun would just go chase after you. And so would I."

Akane blinked and shed another tear. "B-but... why?"

Hinata made a small comforting smile. "Because you're our daughter and we love you. That's why."

Akane was shocked, but she returned the hug and wept into Hinata's chest. The Hyuuga heiress just held her and stroked her hair and back to comfort her, whispering caring words. 'I used to wonder what it was I couldn't remember. Now... I don't want to know anymore. I'm happy with this life now, as Akane Uzumaki. I don't need to remember who or what I used to be.'

"Everything will be okay Akane-chan." Hinata added.

"Okaa-san, is this why you and the others insisted I not tell anyone who I really am?" Akane asked after a sniffle.

Hinata slowly nodded. "Yeah. If people knew, they'd think you're the old Kyuubi who attacked here and do to you everything they did to Naruto-kun years ago. If him being a kid didn't stop them from hurting him, it won't stop them from hurting you if they knew."

"I see." Akane said. "Then thank you for trying to help me. You're the best kaa-san I could possibly ask for."

The two just sat there for a moment longer in silence. "Wanna go back and get some ramen now?" Hinata asked to lighten the mood for both of them.

Akane shook her head. "I'm not hungry anymore. Maybe later."

Not sure what to do now, the two girls left the mountaintop and just walked around the city for a moment. Hinata decided to go ahead and buy a few things for Akane that she wanted. These were a few books, which Hinata confirmed weren't smutty when Akane asked, a dartboard to work on aim, and a fox plushie for fun. They were on their way back to Naruto's place to drop them off when they saw him at the front door, about to open it himself.

"Otou-san!" Akane shouted as she dropped her shopping bag and rushed to hug him.

Naruto fortunately reacted in time, otherwise he would find himself tackled by the red-haired little girl. "Hey Akane-chan, miss me much?"

"I'm sorry for everything." Akane told him tearily.

Naruto was confused. "About what?"

Akane was about to answer, but Hinata placed her hand on her shoulder. "I'll tell him, Akane-chan. Why don't you go inside and put your stuff away?" She nodded sadly and took both bags inside the apartment. Hinata then faced Naruto after shutting the door, keeping them both outside. "She knows about the attack eighteen years ago now, Naruto-kun."

"Did she remember it?" Naruto asked.

Hinata shook her head. "No. Ichiraku-san mentioned it to her casually this morning when he told her why people hated you back then. S-she feels terrible and blames herself for your pain."

Naruto looked at his apartment door just then, then faced his girlfriend again. "I was going to ask you out tonight, but I have a feeling she needs me with her today more. Sorry."

"Don't be. I think she'd like both of us around today too. She's already called me Okaa-san even." Hinata beamed brightly at the end.

"Really?" Naruto asked. "I'm glad for you two then. So you want to stay here tonight?"

Hinata blushed and kept a coy grin on her face. "Why Naruto-kun, I didn't think you had it in you to ask me for that."

"No, not that. Not yet anyway." Naruto defended himself, then realized something. "You knew what I meant all along, didn't you?"

Hinata giggled. "Sorry, couldn't resist. You should have seen your face though." 'And I'm not against the idea either.' She added in her head. "Well, what do you say we go in there and cheer our girl up, Otou-san?"

Naruto smiled and opened the door a crack. "After you, Ero-Okaa-san."

Meanwhile, in a forest on the other side of Konoha, a white fox was busy carving the kanji for 'talk' within a circle in the dirt. Then it channeled some chakra into it. "If anyone in the fox realm can hear me, Kyuubi-sama has been released from her prison. Repeat, Kyuubi-sama has been released. Be cautious, phoenixification has occurred. I will keep an eye on her in the meantime."


	15. Chapter 15

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Anko would be a more used character in the manga._

Chapter 15: The Fox Gets Another Friend And Naruto Gets An Idea

For the rest of the day Naruto would hang out with Hinata and Akane. The young girl kept looking stricken most of the time in the beginning, feeling ashamed of her involvement in Naruto's life. Even though both her chosen parents told her repeatedly there was no reason for her to be so upset, she still looked like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. To try and cheer her up, Naruto and Hinata decided they had to do something big. Naruto had an idea around eleven, and took Akane with him to the hokage's office, with Hinata tagging along.

They saw Shizune returning from an errand before they could enter the building. "Hey, Shizune-nee-chan, is baa-chan busy?" Naruto asked.

Shizune gave him a confused look. "Naruto, didn't you just get back from a mission not two hours ago? Don't you want to relax a bit or spend time with your daughter before getting another one?"

"Actually, that's what I want her for. Can I talk to her soon?"

"Now's not a good time. She's got another team to brief then her lunch break. Try back around 1:00, okay?" Shizune answered.

"Gotcha. See ya later nee-chan." Naruto told her with a wave and led his followers away. Shizune went inside, wondering what he wanted.

"You don't want to go away so soon, do you Otou-san?" Akane asked as they headed nowhere in particular.

Naruto picked her up and placed her on his shoulders. "Naw. Actually I was hoping to get a few days off and try something out. We'll just have to wait and see."

"What 'something' did you have in mind, Naruto-kun?" Hinata curiously asked.

"You're going to have to wait too, Hinata-chan."

The trio went back to Iruka's, who had left to attend personal business, and got all of Akane's things and took them back to the apartment. Still with time to spare before seeing Tsunade, they went back outside. Naruto got an idea. "Hey, Akane-chan. I met someone while I was gone. A boy about your age. Wanna see him?"

"What's he like?" Akane asked.

"Don't tell me you adopted another one." Hinata added.

"Actually, he sorta took to Tenten on the way back and is with her now. And it's more of an older sister-little brother thing if you ask me." Naruto told his girlfriend. "As for what he's like, you'll just have to see for yourself."

After a while they reached Tenten's smithshop. Tenten liked her family's business so she saw no reason to move away, but she did live in a separate part from her father now. Naruto and his followers entered and saw the bun-haired kunoichi showing Noburo around the shop. Tenten saw them enter. "Hi guys. What brings you here?"

"Just stopping for a visit. And thought that these two oughta say 'hi'." Naruto replied. "And I thought I'd see if you've got anything new on the shelves yet."

Tenten shrugged. "Look around then."

Apparently the two kids present decided to introduce themselves to each other without being told to. "Hi. Is that your natural hair color?" Akane curiously asked.

Noburo twirled a lock of sky-blue hair in his left hand. "Yes, it is. But I dye it when I need to hide myself. Is yours naturally red?"

"Yeah. I'm Akane Uzumaki by the way."

"I'm Noburo Sentaka. I'm new to town."

"Me too. Been here about a week or so. You?"

"Just got here today. Is there anything fun to do here?" Noburo asked.

Meanwhile, the three adults present just stepped back and let these two handle themselves.

"Well, there's parks, shops, places to swim, theaters, plenty to keep you busy." Akane mused with her hands behind her head. "And the best ramen in the country is here too."

"I'm not a big fan of ramen." Noburo commented.

Akane's hands dropped to her side. "What? How can you not be? It's delicious."

Noburo shrugged. "Hmmph. I prefer okonomiyaki."

"Man, is everyone with odd-colored hair weird?" Akane asked herself, thinking of Sakura too at the moment.

"I'm not weird. I'm just different than you." Noburo stated, a little irritated and offended.

"Sorry. I just never thought someone couldn't like ramen. And I guess I could be considered weirder than you." Akane said to smooth things over.

"Why?" Noburo asked, not so bothered anymore.

Akane looked away. "Well, I'm able to transform myself. Isn't that weird to most people?"

"Oh that's nothing. Check this out." Noburo then took off his headband and made a hand sign. "Ninja Art: Hair Limb Jutsu." His hair got longer and formed a third arm for him. He then put the headband back on to stop it from getting longer, then had his hair-hand grab on of the swords on the shelves.

Akane gasped. "That is so cool. What else can you do?"

Noburo smiled. "Here's one. Ninja Art: Quill Jutsu." The hair then turned into a shield of quills around his back and sides, just like Jiraiya could do. This of course made the sword drop onto the floor, catching Tenten's attention.

"What's going on?" Tenten asked, hoping nobody was hurt.

"We're okay, nee-chan. Just showing Red here a few skills." Noburo answered.

'Red?' Akane thought.

"Well do that outside." Tenten told them. 'Especially if they both decide to try that.'

"You heard her Blue. Let's go out." Akane told the boy with a sly smirk before heading out before him. When they got out she saw his hair was flat again. "How did you do that quill thing again?"

'There's no way she can do it, but might as well let her figure that out.' Noburo thought. "Okay watch this." He then made the ox sign and called out the jutsu name, making his hair become sharp as needles. "Think you can do this?" Akane made the sign and channeled her own chakra into her hair, calling out the name as well. Right away her long red hair became quills too, greatly surprising the blue-haired boy. "How did you do that?"

"The same way you did, I think." Akane simply answered, allowing her hair to go back to normal.

'Well, it's not a kekkei genkai, but still it shouldn't be so easy for her to copy my clan's personal style.' Noburo thought.

"How about the other thing you did?" Akane asked.

"Sorry, but those are family moves and I'd like to keep them secret for now."

"Okay then." Akane said with a shrug. "So are you going to be a ninja someday?"

Noburo lightly kicked a random pebble at that moment. "Well, I am the last of my clan. I think it's what they would have wanted. Plus, I'm stuck with this hair condition for the rest of my life. Might as well use it. What about you?"

"You bet. I'm going to be hokage someday and make this whole town a better place." Akane exclaimed with a confident grin. Ever since she had heard about the Kyuubi attack, she figured the best way to make up for it and Naruto's resulting misery was to work at making it a good place to be. Thus her goal and resolve were only strengthened for her.

"Well, best of luck then." Noburo told her as he pulled a kunai out of a holster and cut his hair back to his preferred length. "Hey, you said you can transform. Can you show me that?"

Akane made a hand sign, not out of necessity, and transformed into a mirror image of Noburo. "Do I have any split ends?" She asked playfully.

"Wow. Can you do nee-chan?"

Akane then morphed into Tenten. "So the pen is mightier than the sword, huh? Well I'd like to see a pen cut someone."

"You're good." Noburo commented.

Akane turned back into her normal human form. "Thanks." She then caught the scent of something and looked to her right. She saw Sassha, Shiba's white fox partner, standing by the bushes watching them. "Hi Sassha-chan. Why don't you come over?"

"You know this fox?" Noburo asked. 'Isn't it the wrong time of year for white fur?'

Akane picked up the fox and petted her. "Yeah. She's the partner of a friend of mine. You should meet her too. She's kinda shy but has a good heart."

Hinata came up to the two kids. "Akane-chan, we're going to be heading back now. Okay?" She then saw the white fox in her arms and recognized it. "Isn't that your friend's fox? What's it doing here?"

"Not sure. What are you doing out here, Sassha-chan?" Akane asked the fox.

_"Just trying to contact another fox." _Sassha answered in canine-speak, vulpine dialect.

"Ah. I see." Akane replied. "Any luck?"

Noburo arched his eyebrow. "You understood that animal?"

"Of course I did."

"So you can transform, talk to animals, and quickly learn clan jutsus? Is there anything you can't do?" Noburo asked.

Akane shrugged. "Pee standing up?" She then got an idea, dropped Sassha, and morphed into Noburo. "Actually, maybe I can. Is there a toilet nearby?"

"Akane-chan." Hinata gently warned the girl. The girl sighed and returned to normal. "Good. Now say goodbye. We'll be back later." 'I'm glad she's not so depressed anymore. Looks like she's got better people skills than Naruto-kun did at that age.'

"Bye Noburo-kun." Akane said as she waved and followed Hinata. He waved back, then noticed that the white fox had disappeared.

Naruto, Hinata, and Akane got back to the hokage tower at around 1:10 pm. Tsunade was in a good mood so she let them in. "So what brings you three here today?"

"Well baa-chan, I was thinking about going somewhere for a few days..." Naruto began.

Tsunade irritably interrupted. "You just got back and you want to go out of town again? What kind of father are you?"

"...with Akane-chan and Hinata-chan." Naruto finished with an annoyed look. "You know, a vacation."

Tsunade blinked, surprised and ashamed she had so harshly judged him. "A vacation?"

"Yeah. You know, a trip for fun. Where people go someplace and relax and see sights. That sort of thing."

"I know what a vacation is, gaki. What I want to know is why." Tsunade replied.

"It'll be good for Akane not having to worry about whether or not I'll go away on business for awhile. And she and Hinata could use some time together too. I figured the two of us could take some time off for her, and if we do, might as well go somewhere instead of sitting around here. Whaddaya think?"

Tsunade thought about it for a moment. "Sure. Sounds good to me. I'll let you two have two weeks. You've earned it. Go anywhere you want where we can keep in touch with you if something comes up. Don't worry, I'm not going to be looking for something to come up."

"Unless it's a sake bottle." Shizune mumbled. Tsunade chose to ignore that.

"Do you already have somewhere in mind?" The slug sannin asked.

Naruto shrugged. "I was thinking Wave or something. Anywhere you wanted to go Hinata-chan?"

The Hyuuga heiress was still reeling from the fact she was being allowed to go somewhere privately with Naruto. Well, not entirely private, since Akane was tagging along, but still this was something she had wanted for quite some time. "W-Wave sounds g-great, Naruto-kun."

"Otou-san, isn't that the place where you helped build a bridge and became a hero?" Akane asked, vaguely remembering him telling her that. He nodded. "Neat. Hey, can I bring a friend along? They might like to come."

"We'll see about it." Naruto told her, leaving the answer very open for now.

"So go get ready. Just let me know before you head out." Tsunade told them. Hinata and Akane left to go get packed, but Naruto stayed behind, after telling them he would catch up. "Anything else, Naruto?"

"Yeah, baa-chan. Y'see, there's another reason I asked for this. You still got that thing I asked you to hold on to?"

Tsunade got a wide grin on and opened a drawer. She pulled out a box and tossed it to Naruto. "'Bout time gaki. Make her swoon." He then left.

"I was wondering about that myself." Shizune whispered.

* * *

In an secret location in another country, two men with red eyes were in front of a statue with nine eyes, seven of which were open. With them they had a tan man dangerously beaten up with chakra being drained of him into the statue. Despite his unfavorable condition, they still made sure it was impossible for him to move. After sunset, the eighth eye on the statue opened and the tan man was still and cold.

"Good. Eight down, one to go." The older one with a spiral mask said.

"And lucky for us, we know exactly where to find it." The younger one with duck-shape hair added.


	16. Chapter 16

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, the shichibi would actually have seven tails and the rokubi wouldn't be a slug. The rest of the bijuu are fine as they are though._

Chapter 16: Some Ninjas Relax While Some Hunt

After three days of traveling, Naruto and Hinata had finally made it to Wave. Had Akane been able to transform into a larger fox then they might have been able to ride her and get there sooner. But her transformations were limited in size if not shape. Also they had a tag-along who was still slow for an academy student, which held them up more. Akane had managed to convince Naruto to let Shiba Inuzuka and her two partners to come along.

--Flashback--

"Otou-san, can Shiba-chan come along with us?" Akane asked as Hinata helped her pack her carrying case.

"I'm not sure it's a good idea Akane-chan. This trip is mostly for the three of us after all." Naruto told her.

"But Otou-san, I promised her I'd try to get her some time to be taught by you. This is the perfect chance for that, and I don't want to break my promise. Won't that go against my nindo?" Akane had apparently adopted Naruto's ninja way as her own, thanks to his memories.

Naruto didn't know how to argue that. She had too good a point for him to counter. "Go ask her parents first." Akane grinned and went back to packing.

'Wow, she played him like an instrument.' Hinata thought, impressed. 'Attagirl. Wish I could have done that when I was your age.'

--End Flashback--

Afterwards, Akane quickly asked Shiba's parents if she could come with them. At first they weren't too enthusiastic about it, but then they heard that their shy daughter would be receiving some lessons from Naruto. After that, the shy Inuzuka girl would have had to be placed in a kennel to avoid going. So they agreed, thinking this would help her come out of her shell. But since two kids couldn't keep up with two chuunins, rather than walk, Hinata carried Akane on her back while Naruto carried Shiba, who didn't mind at all. Her dog Mino rode with her while her fox Sassha rode with Akane.

Once they reached Wave, Naruto took them to the town Tazuna and his family resided in. He said he hadn't been here since his training trip with Jiraiya, and they only came here because Jiraiya needed to research some ideas for a beach chapter in his book. Naruto made sure to keep in touch with the bridge builder's family and thought now was a good time to say 'hi' again, when he had the time.

After they crossed the Great Naruto Bridge, Naruto and Hinata let their passengers off and flexed their backs. Akane stopped to take a look at the plaque that bared her father's name and a small credo to him. "Wow, Otou-san. the people here must really like you."

"Well, like I told you, I helped them out quite a bit some time ago."

Akane sighed. "I hope someday I do something that gets something named after me."

"If your father could pull it off being lucky, then you should have no problem Akane-chan." Hinata teased just loud enough for Naruto to hear.

"Well girls, want to go to the hotel first or see something and relax for a bit?" Naruto asked.

"I wanna swim." Akane boasted.

"I'd like to hike." Shiba claimed.

'What I want I can't say since there are kids around.' Hinata thought before saying. "I... w-would rather l-lay down for a while." A few uncalled for thoughts distracted her as she spoke.

"Well then, let's go to the inn so Hinata-chan can rest. We'll find on next to a beach or something so you two can play then." Naruto decided. The two kids didn't argue since he was the 'aplha' of this pack and Hinata liked his choice. She then feigned exhaustion just so she could lean against him as they walked into town. He knew full well what she was doing, but stayed silent.

Naruto had them check into a two bedroom suite. He and Hinata would take on while the two girls would have the other. Hinata laid down on the mattress and sighed pleasantly as soon as she saw it. Naruto unsealed all their cases from the scroll he had them sealed into for convenience earlier. Akane quickly got out her swimsuit and Shiba decided to join her in a quick dunk in the sea. Naruto sat on the alcove to watch them and Hinata at the same time, in case either one needed him for something. For the most part his attention was focused on the two children as they got in the water, although he kept an ear out for Hinata. He noticed that Shiba's puppy was with them splashing while her fox chose to sit by his side instead at the moment.

"Not going to join in the fun?" Naruto said rhetorically.

"Naw. I don't care much for being in water." Sassha answered anyway. During their traveling to Wave she had revealed to Naruto and Hinata she could talk like Kuromaru could. "What about you?"

"Later. Right now I kinda need to be off my feet for a bit. Hope I don't have a blister from all that running."

"Th-there's plenty of room h-here on the bed, Naruto-kun." Hinata suggested with a blush. There was nothing sensual in how she said it, but just the idea of letting her and Naruto share a mattress got her heartbeat going a little faster.

"Sure. That sounds good." Naruto replied, then stretched down next to her. "Yeah, this is much more relaxing." He noticed she was still blushing and couldn't take her eyes off him. So he reached over and stroked her hair. "Don't be so nervous Hinata-chan. This was your idea after all."

"S-sorry. Old habit I guess." Hinata said with a light yawn. Her eyelids started getting heavy and she couldn't resist taking a small nap. Naruto just watched her for a bit while listening for the girls before he ended up joining Hinata.

* * *

"Now that we have eight of the bijuu in our possession, all we need is the toughest one of all, the kyuubi no kitsune." Tobi, AKA Madara Uchiha, stated to his only living relative, Sasuke Uchiha.

Sasuke snorted. "This will be a piece of cake. Even if the Kyuubi is tough, it's container is nothing. We won't even break a sweat capturing him."

"You mean the boy who nearly beat you up to a bloody pulp at the Valley of the End?" Madara asked sarcastically.

Sasuke gave the masked man an irritated look. "I just toyed with him then. It was never a serious fight."

"Sure." The older Uchiha said, not buying it for a second. "After all, there's no need for a jutsu like the chidori in a serious fight. Otherwise, that would mean you had to fight him like you did your brother."

Now Sasuke was pissed. "Shut up. It's not like I need you for anything."

"Oh no, not all all. You didn't need me to take down the hachibi when all three of your team mates were crushed by him did you? I'm just in the way." Madara tended to have a sarcastic attitude with Sasuke since he knew the younger Uchiha had a massive superiority complex that made him feel even tougher than the older one. So Madara liked trying to take him down a peg or two.

Sasuke sneered. Sadly he had to admit Madara's words were true. After his fight with Kisame, whom he defeated thru sheer luck, Kirabi had escaped, not uninjured though, and remained hidden from everyone except music masters. It took Sasuke and his team mates a year to find him and by then the hachibi jinchuuriki was tougher than before. In the battle between them, Juugo got his spine snapped and Suigetsu got evaporated from a carefully timed and aimed raiton jutsu. Karin was crushed and had been catatonic since then, barely more than a vegetable. The only reason Sasuke won was because Madara stepped in at the last moment and faced against Kirabi, making it look easy.

"Still, I don't feel we need reinforcements to take down Uzumaki. You forget that I've..." Sasuke started to say.

"I forget nothing!" Madara forcibly interrupted. "The one forgetting anything is you, foolish boy. Yes, you have trained and gotten stronger in the past few years, and under a sannin no less. But so has Uzumaki. And you expect him to be at the same level he was back when you were on his team? That arrogance will cost you greatly if you face him alone."

"I can handle him just fine."

For a moment, Madara said nothing. Then he shrugged. "Fine. If you're so utterly convinced that Uzumaki is so helpless against you, then by all means go on and face him." He then pulled out a piece of paper and wrote on it. "I'll be here when you're done. Don't blame me when you come crawling back with your tail between your legs." Then he placed the note in Sasuke's pocket.

Sasuke glared but took off, never bothering to remove the note. Madara continued going where he planned to go, to get some reinforcements for his petty descendant.

* * *

When Naruto woke up, he saw two sets of eyes looking at him curiously. Well, four if you counted the animals with them. Three of those sets were at the side of the bed while the last pair was right above him. "Glad you're awake Otou-san. Were you and Okaa-san going to sleep all day? Adults are so weird."

Naruto sat up, which made his adoptive daughter take a seat on his lap. "I wasn't out that long."

"It's nighttime already, Otou-san." Akane replied pointing outside. Naruto turned to see the sun was almost completely set and several stars were visible.

"Damn. Must have been more tired than I thought. So what did you do while I was passed out?"

"We played in the water than came inside and dried off and got back in our normal clothes. While we waited for you to wake up we played with some cards." Akane answered.

"Hope you weren't bored." Naruto added as he tried lightly shaking Hinata awake.

"Not at all. Shiba-chan's great at poker. She's got one heckuva poker face." Akane replied while the Inuzuka girl modestly blushed and grinned.

Naruto swung his legs off the bed. "Where did you learn poker?"

"Iruka-san." Akane told him.

"Hana-sensei taught me." Shiba quietly said with a grin.

Hinata woke up, sat up, and saw how late it was. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to inconvenience us like this."

"Forget about it. You needed some shut-eye. But now that you're awake, what should we do? I have a feeling these two are still restless." Naruto said, pointing to the two girls.

"Why don't we... just go out for a walk and see what there is to do here?" Hinata offered.

The two girls agreed and everyone in their group dressed to stay warm and went out for a walk.

* * *

Back in Konoha that night, three new people snuck around like ANBU troops. One looked like a graceful woman with short auburn hair and amethyst eyes, and carried a long katana. One looked like an older man with dull tan hair in spikes and sapphire eyes, and was armed with tonfa. The last looked like a teenage boy with long black hair and ruby eyes, and had no visible weapons or tools. All three wore jounin outfits, but none were Konoha ninjas.

The three stopped on top of Naruto's apartment and managed to sneak inside without drawing any attention. The old man took notice of all the security traps Naruto still kept up over the years and had them avoid tripping any of them. Too bad he missed one, since once he walked in thru the kitchen window, he was pelted in the face with half a dozen eggs. When he wiped off the mess, the other half of the dozen was thrown at him too. He dodged this attack, but the young boy behind him wasn't so lucky.

Once inside and cleaned off, the three scanned the residence and noticed the scent of the place. "You sure she's here?" The woman of the trio whispered.

"Yes, the scent is obvious, but apparently she's not here at the moment. We'll have to follow the scent trail outside and hope for the best." The old man answered in a whisper too. Then they both hurt a burst from the bathroom, and saw the young boy come out looked angry and very wet with his clothes torn in a few spots.

"Do not go in there." He told them as he tried wringing his shirt out. "Is this really such a good idea?"

"We have to try. You know that." The old man answered, then signaled for them to leave. Surely somebody had heard that blast. They left in a hurry, no time to make sure to reset the traps so Naruto wouldn't suspect anything amiss. Once outside and away before anyone could notice, they tried to track someones scent. It was faint, but they found it leading outside the city mixed with several others. Without further delay, they followed the scent towards the horizon.


	17. Chapter 17

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, we'd see Tsunade and Shizune fight a little more often. Other people, not each other, that is._

Chapter 17: A Good Night In Land of Waves

It didn't take long for Naruto's group to find a place to go the first night in Wave. Apparenty there was a festival of some sort being held, with tons of street vendors and entertainers all in one place. Everybody was drawn to it like a moth. People there wore kimonos with oceanic designs sewn onto them, making the Konoha residents stick out like sore thumbs. The aromas of cooked food and sweet snacks overwhelmed the air and the hypersensitive noses of Akane, Shiba, Mino, and Sassha, but they weren't bothered by it.

Hinata bought the two kids some cotton candy from a vendor right away. Instead of eating it, Akane stretched it out over the top of her head, making a wig out of it. "Hey, Okaa-san, guess who I am." Both girls had a small chuckle, then Akane actually ate the sugary treat. After getting some stray hairs out first, much to her irritation.

"Hey, is that you Naruto?" A girl's voice called out to him from the side. He turned to see a purple-haired woman about his age wearing a sea blue kimono with goldfish on it approach. "Wow, it is you. Good to see you here."

"Ah, hi Isaribi. Didn't expect to see you here." Naruto greeted the once cursed girl. After Isaribi came to Konoha, she was treated for her ailment by Tsunade and several other medical experts. About seven months before Naruto returned from his trip with Jiraiya, she was declared cured. Although that green stripe under her left eye would not go away. But outside that she was normal again. Cured, she wanted to move back to the beach, but didn't want to go back to Land of the Sea. So she was recommended Wave and moved there, and had been living there peacefully since then. Naruto had been informed on all this shortly after his return.

"Who's this, Otou-san?" Akane asked.

Isaribi saw the young girl and smiled. "Why hello there little girl. I'm a friend of his. He helped me out big time years ago."

Akane sniffed her and her face scrunched up. "Why do you smell like fish?"

"Well, that might be because I swim a lot." Isaribi commented.

Akane sniffed her again. "You smell more like fish than salt water."

"Do you make it a point to sniff everyone you meet?"

"Yes." Akane planly answered and took another bite out of her cotton candy. Then she had to pull out a long red hair she missed. "Dang. Next time I won't use a prop."

"So how are things for you here Isaribi?" Naruto asked.

The former fish girl leaned against a street light. "Pretty good. Stable job and unvandalized home. Don't have to wear bandages all the time. So much better than before. How about you? Got a little girl now I see." She then turned towards Hinata. "And would she be your little woman then?"

"Not the way I would say it, but..." Naruto started.

"Damn right he's mine." Hinata proudly claimed, cutting him off. "I'm Hinata Hyuuga by the way."

"My name's Isaribi Meikai. You've caught yourself a good one here, and it's easy to see what bait you used." She added, looking over Hinata's figure.

Hinata blushed and turned away. "Isaribi, I'm not that shallow." Naruto defended.

"But you're not going to complain about it, are you?" The diver replied teasingly. Then to keep it up, she turned to Naruto. "You wouldn't happen to be interested in having a harem now would you?"

Hinata was about to say 'Over my dead body' but Akane butted in. "Otou-san, what's a harem? Is it some kind of furry thing?"

"Depends on if the women shave." Naruto whispered, effectively putting his foot in his mouth. Apparently he momentarily forgot that both little girls present had better than normal hearing.

"Women can shave?" Shiba asked. "But they don't have beards. What would they shave?"

"Harems involve women?" Akane asked, then turned to Isaribi. "Just what are you talking about?"

Hinata butted in. "It's nothing you need to know about Akane-chan, and your father's not getting one. Right Naruto-kun?"

"Of course Hinata-chan. You're the only girl I need in my life." He nervously defended himself.

"But what about me, Otou-san?" Akane asked, sadly thinking her father didn't really want her around.

He patted her head. "You're important too, Akane-chan. I just meant that Hinata-chan's the only girlfriend I need."

"Well, glad that mess is taken care of." Isaribi commented.

"You started it." Naruto accused, and she playfullly acted ignorant.

Akane leaned in towards Shiba. "Looks like they might be a while. Wanna go look around ourselves?"

"Won't we get in trouble?" The Inuzuka girl whispered back.

"Come on live a little." Akane told her friendly, then took her hand and led her away while Isaribi began teasingly chatting about whether Naruto would like a pin up of Hinata in a bikini, which made both Konoha chuunin blush. Soon both young girls were amidst several vendors and kimono-wearing people out having a good time. Mino tagged along with them while Sassha stayed behind for when the two adults noticed the girls walked off.

The scent of ramen boiling swiftly caught Akane's nose and she just couldn't resist. Even better, this one had bits of BBQ steak mixed in with the noodles. She drooled like a hungry dog when she approached the vendor. Without tearing her eyes off the food, she pulled out almost half of her ryo for the trip, which came to about 1475 ryo. "I'll take this much and don't be stingy."

Since it was a festival where prices were reduced to encourage business, Akane got double the amount she would have at Ichiraku's for the same price, giving her six bowls total. She handed one to Shiba and practically crammed the first of her own down her throat. "Could you even taste that Akane-chan, or did you just skip that part?" Shiba asked.

Akane hit her chest to dislodge anything that might have been stuck in her esophagus before answering. "I tasted it, although you're right. I'll eat slower next time." So she grabbed another bowl and ate much slower, but still at a pace that was abnormally fast for anyone.

"Maybe you have a small problem, Akane-chan. Is there a Ramenholics Anonymous group somewhere?" Shiba commented. She did admit the dish was good, but she had never seen someone so enthusiastic, potentially addicted, over one particular type of food.

"Wouldn't that be something?" Akane said with some noodles hanging out her mouth, then she swallowed them. "Hello, I'm Akane U. and I'm a ramenholic." She imitated the voice of someone starting AA. Both girls laughed a bit at that. "Take as much as you want Shiba-chan. Even Mino can have some if he wants. Don't be shy." The husky pup was given a few pieces of steak from Akane's bowl, which he greatly appreciated.

Akane finished her second bowl and was about to start her third one. When she did, she had to take the noodles out of her mouth. "Ah, this one's too hot." She put her finger in the broth and immediately took it out, shaking the broth and burning sensation off. "Way too hot."

"Here, let me fix that." Shiba said, then did two hand signs Akane didn't recognize and placed her right hand over the bowl. "Ice Style: Chill Jutsu." The air around the bowl shimmered and the steam disappeared. "Try it now. I hope it's better."

Shiba retreated her hand, and Akane gave her a curious look, but then grabbed some more noodles with her chopsticks. She slowly taste-tested them. They no longer burned in her mouth, allowing her to chew contently. Akane then lifted the bowl to her mouth and drank some of the broth. It was slightly cold, but much more tolerable now. "What exactly did you do, Shiba-chan?"

Shiba looked down and fiddled with her fingers. "What I did... was the reason there's a rift between me and the rest of my family."

Akane arched an eyebrow. "Do they hate you because you can cool things down? That's stupid."

"No, they don't know I can do this. Even my parents and Hana-sensei don't know. You see, Inuzuka clan jutsus involve working with our animal partners or using earth or fire style jutsus. I can't do either of those elements to the elders' likings, because of my ice chakra."

"Ice chakra? Isn't that a kekkei genkai? How can you have that type anyway?" Akane asked.

"Sassha-chan told me about it. She's an arctic fox so her own chakra has an icy feel to it. According to her, when I was born I was most likely going to die from some problem I had. Apparently I was the first Inuzuka ever born who was allergic to dogs, and all the dander around there made it near impossible for me to breath. But before I suffocated, Sassha-chan said she made me better by sharing her chakra with me to cure my allergy. A side effect was that I gained the ability to do ice jutsus. And she's stayed with me since then to keep an eye on me and teach me how to use my skills."

"Cool ability." Akane exclaimed. "No pun intended."

Shiba snickered after a moment. "If you hadn't said that I might have missed it."

"But wait. If you have this great talent then why are you afraid of some geezers finding out." Akane asked, turning back to her ramen but eating at an even slower pace now.

"Well, if they found out Sassha-chan did it, they'd keep her locked up so they could use her like a slave. At least that's what she told me. And if I showed them my own talents, then, well, Sassha-chan said that instead of being impressed with me, they'd just want me to have lots of pups as soon as I can to create more ice-using Inuzukas. They wouldn't care about me at all, just my ability." Shiba quietly explained.

Akane just looked at her for a moment, then slowly nodded in understanding. "I see."

"So for now, you're the only one that knows because I trust you. I'd rather no one else know at least until the elders can approve of me without knowing. Then maybe I can be respected in the clan." Shiba finished with her fingers tapping the handle of her sword, which looked just like a dark blue fox ready to pounce, making the blade appear to be the tail. Akane hadn't seen her use it yet but heard her friend was pretty good with it. But before she could ask about it, Naruto and Hinata came up to them.

"What were you thinking, walking off away without telling us? You're in big trouble Akane." Naruto sternly told her.

Thinking quickly, Akane did the one thing she knew that could soften the situation. "Ramen?" She held out a still warm bowl for him.

"You really think ramen's going to get you out of... is that steak?" Naruto started but lost focus as he looked at the dish. Then he took it and began eating.

Hinata stepped forward with her arms crossed. "That trick's not going to work on me young lady. You're still in trouble."

Akane then took a wrapped up cinnamon roll out of her pocket for such an occasion and presented it to her chosen mother. Hinata's mouth started watering at the sight of the treat and her hand on it's own reached out for it. "I'll say it for you Okaa-san: I stand corrected."

* * *

Sasuke Uchiha was on his way to Konoha that night to capture Naruto and destroy anything and anyone that got in his way. Nothing could stop him, after all, as he never got tired of pointng out, he was an Uchiha therefore automatically better than everyone at everything. To him this could only be easier to accomplish if Naruto surrendered, and the sky would turn orange before that happened.

Before he got there, he noticed three people leaving from Konoha's direction trying to be unseen. Wondering if they were ninja's on the look out for him, he decided to ambush them from behind. But once he heard one of them say 'The Kyuubi's definitely in this direction', he changed his mind. Rather than ambush, he was going to follow them to Naruto and remain unseen.


	18. Chapter 18

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Shikamaru would know about Naruto and the seal. Naruto practically admitted it in front of him when Gaara tried to kill Lee after all._

_Over 200 favs and alerts. Damn I'm good. Here's a chapter I'm sure every one of you will enjoy._

Chapter 18: Uzumaki Versus Uchiha: The Favored Showdown

The day after the festival Naruto had somewhere specific in mind he wanted to go. He didn't tell any of the girls with him where he was taking them, but Hinata had a good idea and Akane for some reason felt the area was becoming very familiar to her. They came up to a large house down by a beach different from the one their hotel was at.

"So this is the place Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"Yep. Hasn't changed a bit." He told her.

"Just where are we Otou-san?" Akane asked.

"Well Akane-chan, remember when I told you about my first mission outside Konoha?" Naruto asked her.

Akane immediately realized what he meant, but decided to be playful. "So this is where the Princess of Snow lives? But this isn't Land of Snow."

Naruto groaned while Hinata heard the subtle playful tone in the girl's voice. "Wrong mission sweetheart. This is the house of the bridge-builder's family." He immediately felt a glomp on his right leg, and saw Akane hugging him tightly. "Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong at all." Akane happily answered with a small tear. After hearing what he called her, her heart exploded with joy. Ever since hearing about her forgotten past, she feared Naruto might actually just be acting okay to avoid upsetting her. Like he didn't really see her as family but didn't have the meanness to kick her out of his life. Now, she felt he really did care about her, even if logically he shouldn't. 'I love you, Otou-san. I will make you proud of me.'

Naruto decided to pick her up and carry her on his shoulders, which she didn't mind one bit. Then he and the others walked up to the door and he knocked. After a moment Tsunami answered and quickly smiled. "Oh my, is that you Naruto? Good to see you again. And who's this with you?"

"Hi Tsunami. This is my girlfriend Hinata and on my head is my daughter Akane. The other little girl with the red marks is her friend Shiba and her two pets."

"Daughter huh?" Tsunami asked, looking over Akane, then Naruto, then Hinata and back to Naruto. "But she doesn't look anything like you. And who's the mother?" Akane pointed to Hinata, surprising Tsunami. "Aren't you both a little young to be parents to a girl her age?"

"We're not... biologically her parents. B-but that doesn't matter. We both consider her our daughter." Hinata told the older women politely.

Tsunami smiled. "Why don't you all come inside? Inari and Otou-san should be back any minute."

"Where are they by the way?" Naruto asked as they all slowly stepped inside the house. He noted that while the exterior was exactly like he remembered from his last visit, the interior wasn't.

"Getting some plywood I think to make a gazebo for someone." Tsunami told him. "So did you just happen to be in Wave and decide to pay us a visit?"

"Sort of. I brought my girls here for a trip and thought it would be nice to say 'hi' while I was here." Naruto answered. "Were you at the festival last night?"

"Yeah. Were you there?" She asked and they all nodded. "Huh. Wonder why we didn't see you."

* * *

Meanwhile, at their hotel, the three people who had broke into Naruto's apartment had tracked his scent to there and went inside. They asked for a young blonde man wearing orange accompanied with a small redhead girl. The hostess said they were out for the day and would return later. So they went back outside. Not wanting to wait an unknown amount of time, they tried to track down the same scent to find them. Sadly, it was intermingled with too many others so they had to split up and search.

Sadly, Sasuke had watched them and figured that if Naruto wasn't here, there was one place he was more likely to be then any other. And unlike the three he had tracked, he knew where to look.

* * *

Tazuna and Inari were taking longer than expected, so after chatting with Tsunami, Naruto and Hinata took Akane and Shiba outside. "Girls, since we have some time to spare, Hinata-chan and I will go ahead and train you a little." Naruto told them both.

"Really?" Shiba eagerly asked with stars in her eyes.

"Sure. First, we need to know what you can already do." Hinata replied. "We already know Akane-chan's skills. So what are yours Shiba-chan?"

Shiba looked unsure how to answer. "W-well, I-I... I can do s-some Inuzuka-style taijutsu and kenjutsu,... but that's about it."

Hinata, a chronic stutterer in her own childhood, could sense the cover up right away and bent down to look at the Inuzuka better. "I think there's something you're hiding."

Shiba blushed and looked away. "She has reasons for it, Okaa-san." Akane defended her friend's behavior, fully understanding the want to hide a personal truth. "But I must say it's a good skill."

"Okay then, can you tree-walk yet?" Naruto asked.

"Tree-walk?" Shiba asked, tilting her head like a confused dog.

"Show her Akane-chan." Naruto told his daughter. She smiled and walked up one of the tall oak trees with just her chakra. "We'll start with that exercise for you now."

Naruto and Hinata explained to the girl the principles of the chakra exercise and had her and her two partners start practicing after handing her a kunai. Shiba and Mino had really rough starts, both falling on their posteriors right away the first three times. Sassha was at least able to land painlessly but could only go about an inch higher than the other two did.

Naruto put an arm around Hinata as they watched. "How ironic. She's learning this in the same place I did."

"I still think Hatake-san was an idiot for not teaching you sooner. Kurenai-sensei taught me within the first week." Hinata commented. "Was he trying to keep you unskilled on purpose?"

"Not sure. All I know is that Akane-chan's not going to be his student when she's on a squad."

Hinata nodded. "Yeah. She might be better off with Gai-sense... wait, no. What the hell was I thinking?"

"Maybe Kurenai-sensei would be happy to-" Naruto started to say, but was cut off by a large flame coming towards them from behind. It was like there was an angry dragon behind them. Both chuunin jumped away from it, separating in the process. "What the hell?"

Naruto looked to see Sasuke Uchiha standing about ten meters back, Sharingan blazing, looking ready to cause trouble. "Long time no see, dobe."

Naruto glared. Trying to convince the Uchiha to stop fighting was a lost cause and he knew it. All he could do was try to incapacitate him. "What do you want Sasuke?"

"Your tenant." Sasuke coldly answered then pulled out a short sword and pounced. Naruto and Hinata got out kunais and got ready to defend themselves.

The sounds of fighting and metal hitting metal drew the attentions of Akane, Shiba, and the animals. They hide in the bushes to watch and not be drawn into the battle. 'Who is that guy? Why is he attacking Otou-san and Okaa-san? And why does he seem so familiar to me, but not in a good way?' Akane asked herself.

Meanwhile, Naruto and several clones tried to get Sasuke out of the general area so no one would be harmed. He didn't seem to want to cooperate though, even if he didn't know there were others nearby. Hinata tried to incapacitate him with her Gentle Fist but before she could he fired off another giant fireball at her. To defend herself, Hinata used the Rotation technique she finally was able to learn and use. Naruto and his clones tried doing an Uzumaki Barrage but Sasuke evaded it. Then the brooding avenger threw several dozen shuriken at Naruto. His clones vaporized and the original took a single hit on his right abdomen.

"Akane-chan, we should get out of here. There's nothing we can do to help." Shiba whispered to her friend, nudging her arm to ensure her attention.

Sasuke's Sharingan caught the movement in the bushes and actually noticed the chakra auras hiding there. Three were small and insignificant, but one was red and brimming with incredible potential. Rather than ask himself why he didn't bother noticing it before, Sasuke instead aimed a fireball at the bush. All four occupants jumped out of the way and into the open.

Naruto and Hinata were horrified that Sasuke would drag their daughter into this. Up until now, they were mostly defending themselves until they could find a way to stop him and bind him to bring to Konoha. Now their parental sides were taking over. They would fight to keep the kids safe, and if the council's precious Uchiha and coveted Sharingan got hurt in the process, too bad so sad.

Naruto made a few clones and began creating two Rasengans with them while several more clones tried brawling with the Uchiha. Hinata got between him and the kids and told them to make a run for it now. All four of them did, but while Shiba and her animals went back towards the house, Akane hid in the branches of the surrounding trees. There was something about this fight she really wanted to see, and it almost felt nostalgic to her.

Sasuke got rid of the clones but Hinata moved in and fought him personally. The Hyuuga's Gentle Fist style and Uchiha's Intercepting Fist style kept both of them at bay. But Sasuke was the stronger of the two so he kept her stepping back away from him. He was also trying to get her to walk right towards a fallen shuriken that had a paper bomb wrapped around it. Hinata's byakugan saw it so she stepped away at the last moment which made Sasuke trigger it instead. He went flying and crashed into the tree Akane was in, making her fall in front of him.

Sasuke saw the girl and saw she was the one with the red chakra. Akane looked at him and saw two flaring Sharingans. At that moment, deep, petrifying fear and raw vengeful rage sparked in her heart at once, while the vague memory of this man shoving a blade of lightning thru her chest appeared in her mind. This combination of feelings and thoughts would be bad enough in a person, and here they were brewing inside the most powerful demon known to man.

Akane glared and snared like a feral beast and lashed out at Sasuke, clawing his face at least twice as badly as she had Kakashi's before. Sasuke was caught completely off guard so he suffered quite a few deep gashes that would surely bleed and scar. He managed to get her off of him by kneeing her in the gut then sucker-punching off him. She landed painfully and Hinata went to hold her. Naruto ran up and got ready to use his two rasengans. Sasuke deflected them both with a chidori, but Naruto countered that with a kick to the crotch.

Akane squirmed out of Hinata's light hold and charging at the Uchiha like a crazed berserker. She created a few shadow clones and did her own Uzumaki Barrage. When it the air, Sasuke ignored his crushing lower pain just long enough to made a chidori surge that destroyed her clones. Then the real Akane pounced at him, but his hand still had lightning around it, so he sucker-punched her again and she went flying right into a tree, making a big dent in it.

Hinata came up right behind Sasuke. "Go to hell Uchiha!" She tried to karate-chop the back of his head to make him lose consciousness, but he ducked and retaliated with several hand signs then palming the ground.

"Fire Style: Flaming Geyser Jutsu!" At that, a pillar of flame erupted from the ground and struck Hinata's bent-forward upper body. She pulled back but her jacket and a few parts of her skin were burning. She screamed in pain and fright and removed her jacket and rolled on the ground to put out the rest. Naruto immediately went to check on her and help her. Sasuke laughed, but felt a tremendous amount of KI behind him. He turned and saw Akane standing with claws and fangs brandished, and fox ears and tails revealed on her human form, much like when Naruto and Team Eight first saw her. Sasuke couldn't ever look more surprised and confused any more than he did just then. 'What the hell is this girl?'

Akane lunged at him with murderous intent uncharacteristic for an eight-year old girl. Sasuke saw his Sharingan couldn't follow her movements nor that of her red chakra. Not having enough stamina left for more chidori's, he decided to retreat for now. So he used a smoke bomb to cover the area and made his getaway. Akane would have followed, but once the smoke cleared, she saw her adopted mother was hurt and decided that was more important.

"Are you okay, Okaa-san?"

Hinata nodded. "Yeah, I will be. Are you okay? He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"I'll be fine. I don't feel any pain anymore." She answered.

Naruto looked right into her eyes. "Akane-chan, what came over you?"

She didn't answer right away. "I... I don't know. I was acting on pure instinct. There's something about that guy with the two evil eyes I just don't like."

Naruto pulled her into a gentle hug to comfort her and himself after that fight. Hinata joined, and both adults looked at each other worriedly. They both knew that Sasuke was going to come back for them sooner or later. And now he would target their daughter too.


	19. Chapter 19

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Kankuro would have a sword in part two._

_Sorry, but this chapter will be Uchiha-heavy. I don't like it anymore than you do, but for the story it's necessary. __On a personal note, Naruto's behavior towards Sakura in Ch. 469 and 470 gives me hope that there's still a chance for Hinata._

Chapter 19: The Enemy Gets A Few More Added

Hinata was laying down awake inside the house while Tsunami applied some gauze and balms to her skin to treat the burns she got. Naruto refused to leave her side but sent out a few clones to guard the surrounding area. Akane, already returned to her normal human form, was fine but worried greatly for her adopted mother. Shiba was scared that strange man would come back for them any minute.

Tazuna and Inari finally came back after seeing some fire from this direction. They were glad to see Naruto but not so glad to see and hear about what had happened. Especially when they heard it was his old team mate who started the damage, the one who had no interest in mingling with anyone around him. Tsunami finished up what she was doing while Inari tried catching up with Naruto. Tazuna meanwhile sat down on his recliner and mumbled how he'd tell the ruler of Wave to put an attack on sight order for Sasuke Uchiha. Since they weren't controlled by any Konoha council they didn't have to be lenient towards him if they found him.

Later when Hinata could sit upright and walk around Naruto first summoned a toad and asked it to deliver a message to Tsunade, saying Sasuke had been spotted and was after him now. The toad agreed and vanished. After that, he asked Hinata to go outside with him for a moment and Tsunami to watch over the two girls until they returned. Both girls agreed, but Akane chose to wait outside while Shiba helped Tsunami with drying the dishes.

* * *

Sasuke Uchiha was not in a good mood. But then again, when was he anything else? He had been forced to run away from the class dobe, the weak Hyuuga girl, and some little girl with odd chakra. He told himself it was because the girl was a surprise he hadn't expected and needed to plan out a counter before doing anything. Especially because her chakra and abilities were so confusing to him.

'What was the deal with that red chakra? I haven't seen that since the Valley of the End. And that look she had at the end. What kind of henge was that? For that matter, how could she do a henge when she was clearly too emotional to control such a jutsu? And why would she take on a form that made her look like some kind of human/Kyuubi hybrid?'

That last thought made something in his mind click. 'Wait. Red chakra and Kyuubi-like henge? Could that girl have some connection to the nine-tailed fox? Like Naruto? That should be impossible, but what if it's true?'

Sasuke thought about it, and figured there was only one way he could get an answer. He reluctantly reached into his pocket and pulled out the note Madara had left him. When he unfolded it, he saw no words, but some nonsensical runes drawn in a spiral. He looked at it in disgust, but then out of the corners of his eyes saw the surrounding area sort of melt around him and turn navy blue. Even the sky looked like it was melting. Sasuke did a genjutsu release but nothing happened. Everything then turned a solid navy blue, like he was inside some sort of sapphire, then returned to normal. Only he wasn't in the same place he had been before.

Sasuke saw himself underground in some sort of hallway, much like back in Orochimaru's lairs. But the place was lit with lightbulbs as opposed to candlelight and looked more like a prison than a hide-out. And the biggest difference was that Madara was right in front of him, looking like he had been expecting the younger Uchiha. "So, come crawling back eh?"

"No. Just figured I'd see what you're so interested in."

"Sure." Madara stretched the word sarcastically. "So how badly did Uzumaki beat you?"

Sasuke sneered. "He didn't beat me. There was just something extra involved I didn't suspect before."

"Like I tried telling you earlier boy, you're an idiot if you believe that you're the only one whose arsenal has changed in the time apart." Madara reprimanded with a sigh. "Just be grateful I went to the trouble to get you some reinforcements to replace your old ones."

"Just where are we and how did I get here?" Sasuke asked.

"We are in an old holding cell used by an old Konoha elder named Danzo. The war-hawk had his own private ninja army called ROOT which did his bidding and his alone, while sometimes playing double agent for the hokage. His training for ROOT agents started when they were young and impressionable, and if successful turned them into emotionless drones." Madara explained, then spread his arms out as if to embrace nothing. "Here just happens to be where he kept the unsuccessful attempts."

'Sounds like Orochimaru.' Sasuke thought. "What exactly made them unsuccessful?"

"From the records I've seen on the inmates, some either somehow kept onto their free will or lost their sanity. In a few cases their talents weren't that useful or too dangerous in the end."

"So why are you interested in some rejects then?"

"We're about to acquire the most dangerous bijuu, are we not? So we need someone with dangerous talents to match it and keep those defending it on their toes."

Sasuke arched an eyebrow. "Who did you have in mind?"

Madara held up a portfolio with what looked like files inside. "Well, sadly our options are limited. Danzo was taken out of power and his ROOT was disbanded. Thus there's been no one to keep an eye on this place. Most of the inmates have starved or escaped, some dying in the process. From what I can tell only two remain, and while both are quite talented, only one appears to be really useful for our needs."

"Why do they stay here? Are they incapable of leaving?"

"I don't think so. Maybe they just choose to stay here. Let's go check them out." Madara said before walking down the hall.

"Wait. Before we go on, how did you bring me here again?" Sasuke repeated.

"Oh. That 'note' was actually a small way for me to manipulate the space-time continuum around you when you looked at it, thus warping you right to me. Rather effective way to get around, isn't it?" Madara answered then continued on his way, Sasuke tagging along.

Along the way they passed several closed doors still locked with broken window, and doors that looked burst open from the outside. The area looked like a mini-war had happened and one was lucky to get outside alive. No signs of life or death were visible, just barrenness. After a while they reached a room with an open door and saw someone sleeping on a bed inside. The room looked quite lived in, meaning possessions organized to make it look homey. However, there were no electrical devices inside.

The sleeper wasn't covered with a blanket or anything so nothing was hidden. It was a teenage girl who looked about 17 years-old with silver hair. Not grey hair like Kakashi's, but a metallic glint that looked like it had been spun from silver. She also wore a simple dress with gold and silver stripes, making it look like the skin of some metal tiger. She wore a shiny yellow bracelet on each wrist and ankle, and even appeared to have one around her neck like a collar. Her shoes looked like they were gilded gold, with a shape meant for running.

"Who's she supposed to be?" Sasuke asked.

Madara looked thru the portfolio until he came upon a certain paper with her photo printed on it. The photo revealed she had eyes as orange as Naruto's jumpsuit. "Hmm... Danzo must have been a little vain that day. When he gets recruits he strips them of their original names and gives them pseudonyms to use on the jobs. Apparently he dubbed this girl here Dansue."

"What are her abilities?" Sasuke asked, always eager to know another's strength.

"Well, according to this, Danzo saw her natural lightning affinity and conducted tests to see if he could create a new use for it. It doesn't say what happened to her, but the end result was quite powerful. Her body ended up becoming something like a lightning rod and battery. This meant that she absorbs all electricity around her like a sponge and stores it inside her, using it to power up her own body and jutsus."

"So if lightning striked her, she'd get stronger?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes. She's probably the only person in the world beside Uzumaki who could survive being hit by your Chidori. You might as well feed her if you attacked her that way. Electricity just fuels her more and gives her the power to strike back."

"So why is she considered a reject?"

Madara looked that over again to confirm it. "Apparently the tests done on her worked too well. She became unable to stop absorbing electricity, even from nearby machines. All that extra energy in her made her restless and hard to control or keep contained. Danzo had to use several electric inhibitors on her at all times to at least reduce the absorption and release of the energy by 95%. So in the end she was just too reckless for his wants. And apparently she was one of the independent thinking ones."

All this talking made the girl, Dansue, wake up. Rather than do it slowly like any normal person, she just bolted right awake, as if she had been the whole time. "Who the heck are you?"

"Dansue, how would you like to leave this rats nest and come with us?" Madara asked.

The ROOT reject frowned. "I'm not going anywhere without my little brother."

"I suppose we can allow that." Madara replied.

Sasuke grunted. "I've got no need for useless tag-alongs."

Dansue glared and Sasuke could have sworn he literally saw sparks fly around her. "I'll have you know my little brother's a tactical genius."

Sasuke didn't look impressed. "Prove it."

Dansue got out of her bed. "Fine I will. Please be quiet though. He tends to sleep during the day. Doesn't like light."

Dansue led them both to a room where the door was still locked but it looked like something attached on the wall around had been broken off. She slowly opened the door and peaked her head inside. "Ichi-chan? Can you hear me?" A moment of silence prompted her to step inside more. "Ichi-chan?" Sasuke and Madara looked inside and saw the room was very dark and windowless, and in this dark Dansue slightly glowed.

"Ane-ue?" A soft voice rang from the shadows.

Dansue stepped forward and opened her arms up. From out of the darkness a small crouching boy with black messy hair and black eyes came forward like a nervous animal. He had sunglasses resting on his forehead, which was odd considering it was amazing he could see at all in here without them. His height made him look about seven years-old and his skin was a little darker than normal, meaning he possibly had parents or at least grandparents from Kumo.

The boy saw Sasuke and Madara behind Dansue and twitched. "Who are they?"

"Just some visitors."

The boy looked them over again, then stared down at the floor before looking back at Dansue. "Fluffy doesn't like them."

Dansue leaned down and hugged the boy gently. "Ichi-chan, we can't stay here forever. It's getting harder and harder for both of us. They want us to go with them somewhere. If they wanted to hurt us, then they already would have, wouldn't they? Why not give it a try?"

"This is your tactical genius? This shivering brat?" Sasuke commented.

Dansue frowned. The boy put his sunglasses on and threw a flare bomb towards the ceiling. It exploded and lit up the room. Sasuke closed his eyes to block out the light. When he felt it faded, he opened his eyes but saw pitch black. He activated his Sharingan and still saw absolutely nothing. He then tried a genjutsu release and still no change occured. He was completely blind.

"How the hell is he doing this?" Sasuke demanded. He didn't even hear a jutsu called out yet.

Dansue grinned confidently. "I told you. Ichinoshikyo, or Ichi-chan as I call him, is a tactical genius. A bit off-kilter at times because of that son-of-a-bitch Danzo, but you'd never find a sharper mind. Only seven years-old and he's already created and figured out two hundred jutsus. Most of which use light and shadows to work. What you're experiencing is his specialty. He blinds you with lights and shadows."

Madara looked thru the records after hearing this. "Her story checks out, Sasuke. Apparently Danzo felt his body was better kept away from the battlefield due to his creativity and... here it says 'slightly schizophrenic tendencies and solarphobia.'"

'He could be really useful.' Sasuke thought as he got more panicked at not being able to see. "Fine, I take back what I said. Now make it stop!"

Dansue tapped Ichi who released the jutsu, which allowed Sasuke to see again. "Alright then. If you can find us both a better home, we'll go with you. But we must travel at night; Ichi-chan won't go anywhere while the sun is up."

"That's workable. As long as you agree to use both your talents to help us capture a monster in human form." Madara told them, trying to make them think catching Naruto was a good thing to do.

Dansue nodded, then looked to Ichi. "Sound good, Ichi-chan?"

The boy twirled some of his hair before answering. "Not like that guy, Ane-ue. But Fluffy likes his shadow. That's good enough for me."

Sasuke looked really confused. Madara, still wearing his mask, was impossible to read. "Who's this 'Fluffy'?"

"His shadow." Dansue told him. "Ichi-chan believes that shadows are alive, have names, and talk to him. Just deal with it okay? And don't complain if he gives your shadows names too. He named mine Camel."

Sasuke said nothing, but did not looked pleased. 'Something tells me I'm not going to like this.'

Ichi then pointed at Sasuke's feet. "Butter." Then he pointed at Madara's. "Sprinkle."

'Dammit, I was right.' Sasuke grimaced.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata came to a stop by a small old shrine in the woods. They sat down on the shady side and just held each other's hands. "Feeling better, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked.

She nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine. I've been thru worse. I'm just worried about what'll happen next time we see him. Are you still determined to save him?"

Naruto didn't reply right away. "Not sure. I'd rather he not become any worse than he already is, but that might not be possible. And if he tries hurting you or Akane-chan again, I won't care about his well-being. Both of you are the most important things to me now."

Hinata smiled and kissed his cheek. 'I'm so glad Sakura never gave him a chance when younger. I do feel bad she later regretted it, but not that he decided to move on.' She remembered how upset Sakura looked for a few weeks after she tried telling Naruto she loved him but he didn't believe her and was already trying to be with Hinata. Hinata, being who she was, felt sympathetic towards the pink-haired kunoichi, but wasn't going to let go of Naruto, come hell or high water.

Naruto smiled at the Hyuuga heiress and kissed her back. "Hinata-chan, there's another reason why I thought this trip would be a good idea. There's something I wanted to ask you with nobody around. Actually, I was going to do this a week ago, but then Akane-chan showed up so I had to wait. But now, I don't want to risk never having this chance again."

Naruto then pulled out a black velvet box and got ready to get on his knees before her. But before he did, Hinata pulled him into the deepest kiss both have had in the entire two years they were dating. When they parted, Hinata had a cheerful grin and happy tears on her face. "I know your question, and you know my answer."

_Credit for the creation of Ichinoshikyo goes to Slayers End. Dansue, like Noburo, is my own creation instead._


	20. Chapter 20

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, there wouldn't be a Zetsu. That guy is just too nonsensical to me._

_Some parts of this chapter might not fit in fully with recent canon revelations, but I had this thought up long before those chapters were published and it's easier to go with what I've already decided._

Chapter 20: Akane's Made An Offer She Can Refuse

Akane was sitting outside on the porch just waiting for her parents to show up. Apparently she had a lot more patience than Naruto did at her age. But she was still bored so she worked on spinning water inside a balloon to pass the time. Sassha and Mino were outside with her basking in the sun while Shiba tried being helpful to Tsunami.

A brief breeze flew by, and Akane caught the scent of several new foxes. Sassha caught it to and sat up, then sniffed again. Mino ignored it and kept sleeping. Sassha seemed to be interested in these scents so she went off into the trees, in the direction away from where Naruto and Hinata had gone off in. Akane arched her eyebrows, wondering what was up with the white fox demon. Curiosity got the better of her, so she followed but kept some distance between them.

When she came to a stop behind a thick tree, she saw Sassha in front of three people who smelled just like foxes. One was a man who looked like he was going to be nearing retirement age soon, one was a woman with auburn hair dressed like a polite hostess with a sword, and the other looked like a teenage boy with no real significant features other than his hair would probably look better on a girl. All of a sudden, all three of them turned into foxes, a tan one with six tails, an auburn one with four, and a black one with three. The tan one had armor on his forearms and the auburn one had a katana strapped to her midsection. The black one was unarmed.

"So, tell us where Kyuubi-sama is." The tan fox told Sassha.

"She is close by. If she can hear us, which I'm sure she can, then she should come out now." Sassha answered.

Akane tensed, not understanding the situation. It looked like her friend's partner knew these foxes so she wasn't afraid they were any threat. However, there was something about this whole situation that made her feel uneased. Like she was about to enter dangerous territory.

Sassha turned her head to look in Akane's direction. "Please come out now. These people want to speak with you."

Akane timidly took a step forward into the open, acting very young Hinata-ish. "Hi, I'm Akane Uzumaki. What do you want?"

The tan fox didn't look impressed. "This is Kyuubi-sama?"

Now Akane looked more certain of herself. "Don't call me that! I'm nothing like that beast!"

The three new foxes, and even Sassha, looked surprised by this outburst. The auburn one spoke up first. "We meant no disrespect, kit. It's just that if you are the nine-tailed demon fox, then there's nothing else we can call you."

"You can call be by my name, Akane. What's yours so I don't call you something wrong?" Akane replied with steel in her eyes.

"I am Keisei. These are Jushiro and Gen." The vixen answered, indicating herself, the tan fox and then the black one. "We work for the Council of Eight, and we're hear to confirm that Kyuubi-sama walks the earth again."

"No, it doesn't." Akane told them, making them confused. "Your precious 'Kyuubi-sama' is dead. I'm someone completely different. Remember that."

Jushiro, the tan fox, looked over Akane carefully. "Hmm... it seems phoenixification has indeed occurred."

"What's that? Something about a bird?" Akane asked.

"No, Kyuubi-sama, it is-"

"I said my name is Akane! Call me Kyuubi again and I'll rip your tails off!" The Uzumaki girl growled.

Jushiro cleared his throat. "My apologies, Akane-sama." He waited to see if this offended her, which it apparently did not. "As I was trying to explain, the nine bijuu, one of which you are, all have a unique ability that make them rightfully the true rulers of the demon races. It is called phoenixification, a process that ensures they never completely die. When a bijuu gets killed the body sort of disappears but the chakra rebuilds it from the most basic parts to give them a second life. Like a phoenix from the ashes, a bijuu dies only to be reborn endlessly, because of their unique origins involving the infamous Juubi. The only problems are that the bijuu starts their life over completely, as a kit with no memories of their past life at all."

"So the old me died, and I was born in it's place?" Akane asked.

"Yes." Keisei, the auburn fox, nodded. "That is how phoenixification works, so that the nine most powerful demons will never truly disappear."

Akane snorted. "Good riddance."

The three new foxes practically dropped their jaws. "How can you say such a thing?"

"The old Kyuubi was nothing but trouble. She ruined many people's lives, including Otou-san's. I'm going to make up for her mistakes, because technically they're mine too."

"You don't need to concern yourself with the humans, Kyuubi-sama. After all-" Gen, the black fox started.

Akane cut him off with a glare and a wave of KI, then showing off her nine tails, fox ears, and fangs. "Do you want to lose a tail? Don't assume that just because I'm a kit that I'm weak." They each took a step back from her. "Now, is there anything else you wanted to know? Or can I go now?"

"Well, we wanted to see if you would come with us to-" Keisei started.

"No." Akane told her.

"But I didn't even-"

"You don't have to. I'm not interested." Akane interrupted again, showing she probably did have Naruto's patience after all, as well as manners. "There's only one place I want to be, and I'm not going to leave anytime soon. So why don't you three just go home and chase some rabbits or something?"

"We need you to come with us, Kyuubi-sama." Gen told her. The next thing he knew, Akane was behind him holding a black tail. One Gen saw he wasn't connected to anymore. "What the hell? Why did you do that?" He screamed before he tried to stop the bleeding.

"I told you. If you kept calling me that I'd rip a tail off." Akane plainly answered. "So what else do I have to do to make it perfectly clear that I'm not your 'Kyuubi-sama'? Hmm... what would Otou-san do?"

Sassha approached her, not as worried as the others would have been. "Akane-sama, they mean no harm. They just wish to let you be where they feel you would best be: As ruler of the fox demon realm."

Akane just flung Gen's tail aside like trash. "No. I know where I need to be. I'm not interested in being some kind of ruler."

"Why not?" Keisei asked. "You'd be a queen, or more likely a princess since you're young now."

"Why would I want that?" Akane asked. "Sounds boring. I'd much rather get dirty and have fun now." The other foxes looked like they wanted to argue this, but didn't know how. "And besides, even if I wanted too, you wouldn't really let a kit be in charge of everything. People like you would call the shots and just have me be a figurehead. Not interested at all." Akane then turned back into a normal girl and was getting ready to walk away.

"Akane-sama, you can't just ignore us! The foxes need you and we are on the ruling council. You must do as we say." Jushiro ordered while Keisei looked over Gen's wound.

Akane turned and gave the tan fox a flat look. "There are several things wrong with what you just said. Allow me to point them out. One, you claim the foxes need me. They've been without me for... some time now. Surely they can do fine without me for longer. Two, you want me to be the one in charge, yet you act like you can boss me around. Do you really expect me to just go along with that? Three, you seem to believe you have alpha-status over me. Well, I have two alphas. Three if you count the hokage. And I listen to them first. You have no authority over me."

It looked like Jushiro was about to keep arguing, but Sassha stepped in front of him. "Jushiro-sama, that is enough. Akane-sama has made her decision. And she is right in doing so. There is no use for her in the fox kingdom now. The Council of Eight would still be the ones calling the shots behind her. Just let her be for now and maybe someday in the future she'll be ready to help us all."

Jushiro growled. "No, we can't risk that this new incarceration of the Kyuubi will not be-" He couldn't finish, since Akane managed to rip off two of his tails.

"The next one who does that loses three." Akane declared as she dropped the furry appendages.

'Dammit, she's faster than she looks, even in human form.' Jushiro angrily thought, trying to ignore the pain. "Listen here whelp. Even if you are consecutively several centuries old, right now you are no smarter or mature than a kit. While I'm much more experienced in politics and ways of the world than you. So you should listen to me when I-" He was interrupted again, but not by losing a tail. This time Akane just threw a water balloon, soaking his face and making him cough.

"If you're so much smarter than me you should have seen that coming." Akane said with a teasing smirk. "I'm bored with all this. I'm going to go see my alphas. Just leave me alone, got it?"

"But what about our home? Don't you care about it at all?" Keisei asked.

Akane didn't even bother to look at the auburn fox. "Why would I? I have no memory of that place. And I have my own home to worry about. Now I'm going to go back to my family, and my friends, and live my life the way I want to. If you don't like it, well, tell someone who cares. Just take your offer and stick it where your tails are supposed to be."

Akane then walked off without a care in the world. Sassha turned towards her. "Sorry elder ones, but this is how things are going to be. I'll keep an eye on her, but I'm not going to persuade her on anything." The white fox then left the area.

Jushiro, Keisei, and Gen all looked at each other. "That didn't go as well as I'd hoped." Gen commented.

"It looks like getting our queen back won't be so easy." Jushiro stated. "We may have to prepare the ritual after all."

"Is that really wise?" Keisei asked.

"She is a kit now; she does not know what is best for her. This needs to be done for the greater good." Jushiro told her.

All three vanished in a puff of smoke, as if reverse summoned.

Akane showed up back at the bridge-builder's house, after thanking Sassha for sticking with her, and saw Naruto and Hinata were back. Hinata was inside showing off her ring to Tsunami, who asked to be invited to the ceremony, while Naruto was playing war with Inari. He looked rather relieved to see her come back. "And where were you young lady?"

"Just saw some foxes running by." Akane answered, telling only half the truth. "Weren't exactly the nicest ones."

"Don't go wondering off like that again, do you hear me?"

Akane lowered her head shamefully. "Yes, Otou-san."

Naruto knelt down and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm not mad, just upset. You got me and your mother worried. We don't want anything bad to happen to you."

Akane smiled. 'You're the best, Otou-san. And that's why I'm staying with you, my alpha.'


	21. Chapter 21

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Haku would have definitely been a girl._

Chapter 21: Disaster Brewing In And Out Of Konoha

Fearing Sasuke making a destructive return the longer they stayed there, Naruto and his group decided to leave Wave and head back to Konoha. Tsunami and her family thanked them for their visit and looked forward to seeing them again in a few months. So they checked out of their hotel and went home, stopping only to sleep and work on Akane's and Shiba's training. The two girls were both happy that before they got back they both could walk up a tree without hands easily.

When they got back inside Konoha the first place they went to was the Inuzuka estate to drop off Shiba and her partners. Her parents were glad to see she had a good time and thanked Naruto for taking her along. After that and Akane and Shiba said goodbye to one another, they headed to the hokage tower. Tsunade was there, looking like she had been expecting them. "Tell me what happened." She then looked briefly at Hinata, then back at Naruto. "About encountering Sasuke, that is."

"He came out of nowhere saying he wanted 'my tenant.'" Naruto told the hokage, who's eyes briefly looked at Akane. "Then he started fighting me and Hinata. We held him back, but he got Akane-chan involved."

Tsunade noticed the lack of the 'chan' suffix Naruto used for Hinata, and then looked at the little girl again, worried this time. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"

Akane unhappily nodded. "Yeah, the evil-eyed emo did. But I got him good too." She finished with a confident smirk.

"Oh did you now?" Tsunade asked.

"Yep, Baa-chan. Tore that guy up. Otou-san told me about him, and I only wish I did more than almost scratch his brooding face off." Akane added.

'I love this kid.' Tsunade gleamed, then looked at Naruto. "And then?"

"We were about to do Kami-knows-what to him for endangering Akane-chan. Council wants be damned at the time. Hinata got burned by him, but before we could really do much more, Akane-chan frightened him off by doing a partial transformation. You just know he's going to try something again, baa-chan."

Akane looked up at Naruto. "Otou-san, is it okay for us both to call her Baa-chan? Isn't that sorta odd?"

"She's right, gaki. Guess that means you've gotta call me Hokage-sama from now on." Tsunade said.

"How about sake-sama instead?" Naruto grumbled.

Tsunade looked like she wanted to punch him but thought it would be a bad idea for some reason. So she just took a deep breath and rested her chin on her clasped hands. "Well, back on subject, I'll inform all ANBU and village guards to keep an eye out for Sasuke Uchiha and handle him with extreme cautious and suspicion of hostility. If he wounds or kills any ninja, he is to be treated like any criminal irregardless of lineage, and if he gets any civilians involved, attack to kill."

Tsunade then turned to Akane and comfortingly smiled. "Now Akane-chan, why don't you go outside and have some fun? We're going to be having some grown-up talk now and you'd be bored anyway."

"Thanks, Baa-chan!" Akane said as she headed out the door, not waiting to get permission from either Naruto or Hinata first.

When the girl left, Tsunade regained Naruto and Hinata's attention before they chased off after her. "Now then, tell me what I _really_ want to hear about."

Hinata was the first to get the message, and showed her left hand with a bright smile. Tsunade had already seen the ring, since Naruto asked her to hold onto it so Hinata's byakugan wouldn't spot it in his apartment. But still, actually seeing it on the Hyuuga girl's finger was something else. And it was an impressive ring. Actual gold with three 15 karat diamonds placed right into the band so she wouldn't have to worry about damaging it if she got in a fight with it on.

Tsunade made a teasing but pleased grin. "So you settled for the gaki huh? Think that's wise?"

Hinata knew the older woman was just toying around, but she had to act fast before Naruto did something hotheaded and ruined the moment. "Wisest thing I've ever done, and I don't consider it settling. If anything, he's the one who's settling, not me."

Rather than be a loudmouth, Naruto wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "No I'm not." He whispered to her, but Tsunade still caught it.

"Eitherway, don't worry about something like that. Just be glad you're together now. Now, tell me what happened when he popped the question."

Hinata blushed and fiddled with her hands. "W-well, he t-took..." She had to stop and take a breath to calm her nerves, not wanting to stutter here. "He took me outside to a private spot surrounded by trees and we sat down on a bench by some old shrine. He told me there was something he had wanted to ask me since before Akane-chan showed up, but didn't get the chance to until then. First, I just saw the box and knew what it meant, and... I j-just got so excited."

"She didn't even let me pop the question, baa-chan." Naruto butted it with a smirk.

"Yes I did." Hinata countered. "I told him he already knew my answer, but before he could put the ring on my finger I insisted he actually ask, which he did and... well, you know the rest."

Tsunade smiled. "So when's the wedding?"

"We're still working that out." Naruto answered. "Also gotta figure out who all to invite, where to hold it, and who'll cater."

Hinata tapped his chest. "It won't be Ichiraku's so don't even think about it."

"Aww but Hinata, Akane'll be so upset." Naruto mock-pleaded.

"There can be maybe a few bowls for the both of you, but a real restaurant will do that job." Hinata told him.

"Any idea who the maid of honor's gonna be?" Tsunade asked.

"Not you, Hokage-sama. Why would I want the closest thing I'll have to a mother-in-law to be that?" Hinata teased.

Tsunade was about to argue, but when she opened her mouth a large bang could be heard outside the tower. All three in the room looked out the window and saw a large amount of bright orange paint splattered on the ground. And it looked like someone covered in the same paint was standing right in the middle of it.

All three went outside to get a better look at this. They saw Kakashi, standing still as if frozen with one of his porn books, covered all over the front bright orange as if someone had thrown a bucket of orange paint on him. Or more accurately, judging from the surrounding area, he stepped on something that exploded with orange paint.

Naruto and Hinata looked at each other and said one thing. "Akane."

Tsunade just laughed a lot.

"We'll talk more later, baa-chan. Right now we've got a girl to find." Naruto told the slug sannin.

"Wait a minute Naruto. Since you're her legal guardian that means you've got to take responsibility and clean this up." Tsunade argued.

"You were the one who told her to go have fun. So you have to take responsibility for this one, Hokage-sama." Hinata pointed out, then left with her now fiancee.

Tsunade swore. Kakashi's one thought so far was 'I sure hope this stuff washes off.'

Naruto and Hinata looked all over Konoha for the red-haired little girl. The first place they checked was Ichiraku's but she wasn't there. And luckily no orange paint was either. The next trace they had of her was on a bench covered partially in orange paint. The untouched part made it look like a person had been sitting there. They didn't have to wonder for long who it was, since an orange-colored Sai walked up to them.

"Say, Naruto, could you tell me where the bathhouse is? I'm having a hard time seeing." The former ROOT agent asked, with that eerie smile on his face again. It looked like paint was keeping him from opening his eyes all the way.

"Yeah, I think it's that way." Naruto pointed in a random direction, not sure at all if it was true or not. "Do you know where the girl who did this went?"

"I think I heard her run west." Sai told him. "How did you know it was a girl who did this?"

"She got Kakashi-sensei too." Naruto told him. "Gotta go. See ya." He and Hinata went west quickly, hoping to stop further damage.

'I hope my privates aren't orange now.' Sai predictably wondered before trying to find a place to wash off at.

Later, Naruto and Hinata happened upon one of the paths around the village that Guy and Lee used for jogging. They saw a hole dug in the ground with orange paint splayed all over the place like some sort of paint land mine had gone off. Guy and Lee were laying on there backs on the ground looking like a bomb had gone off in their faces. A bomb filled with orange paint that covered their fronts.

Naruto smirked. "I don't know how she's doing this or where she got the paint, but boy is she good at pranking."

"She's too much like you for her own good." Hinata commented, trying to hide her own amusement and pride in the girl and doing a bad job at it.

"Ah you know you like it. You wouldn't want her to be a shy stutterer now would you?" Naruto defended both him and her.

"It would make her easier to manage, but then again, she wouldn't be an Uzumaki if she was." Hinata replied. "Come on, let's keep looking."

"Should we help those two?" Naruto asked. "Actually, on second thought, let them challenge each other on who can get cleaned first. They might prefer it that way."

"Now that's thinking green." Hinata weakly joked.

"How long have you been waiting to use that one?" Naruto asked as they went back to looking for their adopted daughter.

* * *

Far away but still within the Land of Fire, Sasuke was grumbling about how his new tagalongs were holding him up. Apparently that Dansue girl could move really fast, but her self-appointed little brother Ichi refused to go anywhere in broad daylight. "Why the hell must we wait until the sun sets to move around? That kid won't die if he's outside."

Dansue gave him an irritated look, tapping her foot as she stood outside the carry-on tent they packed which had Ichi inside. "My little brother has solarphobia. He doesn't like light, especially sunlight. So we can't go anywhere until then, especially since he mostly sleeps all day."

Sasuke snorted. "Tell me why he uses jutsus that use light if he's afraid of it."

Dansue shrugged. "Even I've never truly understood that. My best guess is he didn't have much else to work with in that cell or maybe he wanted to control what he feared." Out of the corner of her eye she saw Madara's hands tighten briefly when she said that, but said nothing. "Just don't judge him. You don't know what he's been thru."

Sasuke just stared at her unfriendly. "Big deal. Bet he never had to watch someone he once respected kill everyone he care about in one night. He doesn't know real suffering."

Dansue's whole body sparked. "He doesn't know suffering? We're ROOT rejects. We don't know anything but suffering." Sasuke just gave her an 'oh yeah?' look so she continued. "Were you ever kept in a room where the door would shoot fire at you if you tried to open it? He was. Were you ever forced to be zapped by tasers until you got numb to the whole thing? I was."

"Big deal, so quit your bitching." Sasuke remarked coldly.

Dansue glared at him, then made three quick hand signs. "Lightning style: Static Spin Jutsu." A small tornado of lightning formed around Sasuke. There was no wind so he was being blown around, but one side brushed against him shocking him intensely. He reflexively jolted away but that made him crash into another side with got the same result. He kept being bounded around inside like a pinball until it faded away.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Sasuke demanded.

Dansue didn't look intimidated. "Only a little less painful than an electric chair, but I think I proved a point to you. You're not the only one who's had it rough, Duck-Ass, so stop acting like you're the only one who's felt pain. Otherwise, me and Ichi-chan ought to just leave now."

Sasuke growled. "Fine. Go ahead. You'd just slow me down anyway."

Madara decided now was a good time to step in before they killed each other. "Settle down both of you. Haven't you both forgotten there's strength in numbers?"

"Relying on others makes you weak old fool." Sasuke commented.

"You can't honestly tell me you'd still be alive if someone hadn't been there to help you at times, boy." Madara told him, tempted to use Tsukuyomi on him.

Dansue shook her head in irritation. "What a pompous ass." Sasuke looked ready to stab something into her neck just then.

"That's it." Madara shouted before using his Sharingan on both of them, trapping them in Tsukuyomi and hypnotizing them unconscious. "We're not getting anywhere this way." He then opened up a space-time portal and placed Sasuke, Dansue, and Ichi's tent with him still in it, inside the portal. Now he could move at his convenience rather than wait for them to learn to cooperate. "Next stop, Konoha and the Kyuubi jinchuuriki."


	22. Chapter 22

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Itachi would have been one of the people who helped Naruto out when younger and Sasuke would have felt jealous that he was getting his brother's attention too. Would have worked great for their rivalry wouldn't it? _

Chapter 22: Little Kids Make Themselves Known

"Finally." Naruto said as he and Hinata found Akane, who happened to be outside the Aburame compound talking with Shino. There was no orange paint anywhere, making both chuunin sigh in relief.

Akane saw them approach and waved. "So is all the boring grown-up talk done?"

"Akane, there are two things I want to know." Naruto told her sternly, making her a little nervous. "First, what were you thinking? And second, how did you do it?"

Akane scratched an itch on her arm before answering. "Well, Baa-chan told me to go have fun, and I saw some open paint cans and water balloons just lying in the hallway with no one around. I figured what else were they there for?"

Naruto and Hinata shared a look. 'Did somebody in the Hokage Tower actually leave those things for her to use? Who would do that?'

Back at the tower, Shizune sneezed as she tried to hide some of Tsunade's liquor. She noticed one bottle was a brand she liked and pocketed it for later.

Meanwhile, at the Aburame residence, Naruto stood over his adopted daughter authoritatively. "While funny, I never would have gotten away with such a thing and neither will you." He noticed she was fidgeting a lot. "Don't be scared."

"I'm not. Something's really itching me." Akane countered, scratching more tensely over most of her body.

Shino looked over her. "It appears that some fleas have gotten onto her." He wasn't too surprised; the Aburame estate naturally drew a lot of insects to it because of abundant pheromones and nobody there killed any of them. Not even the undesirable ones. With her smelling like a fox it was only natural parasites like fleas would be drawn to her. "My family has some tonics and soaps made to rid someone, usually outside the family, of such annoyances if you'd like."

"Yes! Get me some now!" Akane demanded.

Hinata whispered something to Naruto. "Actually Shino, this might actually be a good enough punishment for her. So no thanks for now."

Akane looked horrified. "No please! Anything but this!"

"Well then, how about you attend two green ninjas in their workout for a day instead?" Hinata suggested.

"On second thought maybe all I need is a shower." Akane said, choosing the lesser of two evils.

* * *

Sasuke knew where he was, after all, he had been here once before with Karin. But that didn't mean he liked being here. For one thing, it was a pocket dimension, meaning he was just outside reality and time. Two, he couldn't leave until Madara let him, meaning he had absolutely no control here. And finally, he had some annoying company.

Apparently Tsukuyomi wore off on him and Dansue when they got here, which happened to be shaped like some sort of flat valley. Not exactly a desert, but definitely not a meadow, it was hard to describe. There was no sunlight or moonlight, or any form of visible luminescence source, but they could see crystal clear for some reason.

"Where the heck are we?" Dansue asked as she spun around to see everything.

Sasuke saw a small scroll between them on the ground and looked it over. It said _'We don't have time to waste on getting you two to cooperate. So I'll do the traveling while you three figure out how to do a job without trying to kill each other. You all want to get even with Konoha or someone from there, so remember they are your enemies, not each other.'_

"Looks like we've been given a time-out." Sasuke mumbled.

The tent unzipped and Ichi, still half-asleep, looked out. He got wide awake when he saw there was no sun, and jolted outside. "Is this an eclipse?"

Dansue shook her head. "Nope. We're in some new kind of prison for now. Until he learns to cooperate with us." She pointed at Sasuke in that last part.

"I think you mean until _you_ cooperate with _me_." Sasuke stated.

"I know what I said." Dansue remarked.

Sensing the rivalry between the two, Ichi did something he felt was the only sensible thing to do here. He lit a flare, much to his displeasure and threw it over the two bickering ninjas. Dansue wasn't afraid; her little brother would never hurt her. Sasuke however was a little apprehensive. As he looked up at the flare, he heard Ichi say something nonsensical. "Twilight style: Beware of Dog Jutsu."

Sasuke looked down and saw his shadow snake out and link to Dansue's. She saw it too, but apparently didn't recognize this technique. When the flare disappeared, the shadow turned white and still connected the two of them like a Nara clan technique. "What did you do?"

Ichi twirled some hair above his right ear. "Not supposed to fight. Supposed to make nice now like clay. But you act bad like aluminum, so Fluffy said make the two work together. Now Camel and Butter stuck until Fluffy say no."

"What?" Sasuke asked, half-offended at the kid's actions and half-confused out of his mind about what he just said. He tried moving and saw he could move on his own and Dansue didn't mimic him. However, he found he couldn't step away from her, only closer. He tried and saw she ended up being pulled towards him, and when she tried pulling away, he was the one dragged. For all basic purposes, they were tethered together with a maximum distance of 1.5 meters apart.

Sasuke sighed. "Very clever brat, I get it. You've basically chained me and her together with our shadows, and you're not going to let us go until you're satisfied we can get along."

"Told you he was a smart one." Dansue commented. "Might as well just work with it."

Sasuke didn't like this, but knew he had no choice. 'This is going to feel like forever. I just know it.'

* * *

Later that night Akane had to take two hot baths and use a whole bar of soap before her skin stopped itching. In the privacy of the bathroom she shook herself dry like an animal would before wrapping a towel and robe around herself to dry off completely. She went to her bedroom but didn't see Naruto or Hinata in the living room where they had been before. She didn't think much of it and just got dressed, wearing mostly red. While she did like orange, unlike Naruto her favorite color happened to be red. She went into the kitchen and saw a note tapped to the fridge.

_Akane-chan, Okaa-san and I had to go somewhere quickly for Baa-chan. We won't be long. There's ramen in the cupboard if you get hungry. Otou-san._

"Oh that's right. Otou-san said Baa-chan's birthday is tomorrow. Must be doing something for her. Hmm... what could I do?" Akane thought out loud. Just before she put some beef ramen in the microwave, she got an idea. "Hey, if that works, she's got to love it." She looked outside and saw it wasn't too dark out yet. "Hmm... I should probably wait until later so no one will see me."

Naruto came back around 9:20 without Hinata, who was still bound to stay the night after her place for now. Akane asked when she would move in with them, and he told her soon enough, even though the wedding wasn't going to be rushed or anything. Akane asked him what he had planned for Tsunade and he told her it was a surprise. Naruto asked his daughter if she had anything planned herself, and she said it was a surprise too. Naruto just said no orange paint was to be involved, and she accepted that with a sneaky grin.

* * *

When Tsunade woke up, she felt a little groggy. Not hung over, just not completely awake yet. "Another year older. Think anyone will say I'm 29?" She asked herself for no reason. As she brushed her teeth she heard a knock at her door. Answering it, she just saw a small note tapped to her door.

_Happy birthday Baa-chan. Check your face on the mountain. I think you'll like it. Akane._

Almost dreading what kind of graffiti could possibly be there vandalizing the Hokage Monument, Tsunade put on a robe and got on the roof of her house. What she saw was the last thing she would ever suspect, and it made her have mixed feelings. Written under her face in big bold letters, in red paint, were the words 'Give Me Sake Today', obviously written overnight by Naruto's adopted daughter.

"Hey Shizune, come look at this." Tsunade shouted to her assistant, who shared the residence with her since they were so used to bunking together from their past travels.

It didn't take that long for Shizune to get up since she was one of the very few who were a morning person by nature. When she saw the note and the painted message she playfully grinned. "Not what I would have expected, but at least her heart's in the right place. You gonna make her clean it off later?"

Tsunade shrugged. "If it doesn't work."

Later when the two got to their office, they saw the room crammed with literally hundreds of liquor bottles everywhere in dozens of flavors and brands. The desk was buried under them and at least one of the bay windows was blocked from view. Shizune and Tonton gasped while Tsunade drooled and had the kanji for sake flash in her eyes.

"That statement is going to be permanently branded on the mountain from now on." Tsunade managed to make herself say. 'Dear Kami-sama I don't even have an idea where to begin here! I owe that girl... no, my grand-daughter, _big_ for this!'

"_Please _keep it in moderation Tsunade-sama! Remember your liver and brain cells can only take so much!" Shizune pleaded, almost on her knees.

"Maybe tomorrow." The godaime replied, itching to open and chug a bottle. She closed the door and was about to open one and have a toast with Shizune when a knock interrupted her. "Oh this had _better _be good." She angrily stated. When she opened it, she saw Kotetsu and Izumo dragging a wagon stacked with even more booze and a tapped keg too. On the outside, Tsunade just grinned and thanked them; inside, she was dancing and cheering like an over-caffeinated cheerleader. Before they left, she ordered them to tell the ANBU not to touch the monument at all today.

When this liquor was brought in, Shizune only had one thought on her mind. 'Maybe giving that girl paint wasn't such a funny idea after all.'

Tsunade double-checked her appointment book and saw she was clear for the next four hours. Grinning like a loon, she was ready to get as drunk as a leprechaun on payday, until another knock was at the door. "Dammit all to hell! Why can't I even open one bottle before someone does that? This better not happen again." Not bothering to put some sake down, she groaned and opened the door again, ready to forgive if more was being delivered.

There was no alcohol this time; just a happy red-haired red clothed little girl with blue eyes. "Happy Birthday Baa-chan."

Tsunade smiled and gently hugged the girl. "Thanks, Akane-chan. Especially for what you did on the mountain. Best gift I've gotten in years."

Akane looked over Tsunade's shoulder and saw the room. "Wow. Didn't expect it to work that fast."

Shizune stepped forward. "I think I know a certain someone who's going to be spoiled rotten by her grandmother on her own birthday."

"Who?" Akane asked.

"You, silly."

Akane arched an eyebrow. "You know when it is? Tell me. I don't have a clue."

'Damn, forgot about that part.' Shizune thought. "Umm... well, that way we can surprise you more. Hey wait, does your father know you're here?"

Akane's eyes widened. "Oops, forgot that part. See ya." She then ran out and back home as quick as she could.

"You still think letting Naruto be her role model was such a good idea?" Shizune asked Tsunade. But when she turned to look at the older woman, she saw her inhaling a bottle of rum like a starved pirate.

"Are you kidding? C'mon, I'm never going to be thirsty again."

"Or sober." Shizune mumbled under her breath.


	23. Chapter 23

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Isaribi would have had a second appearance in the anime, probably in the shippuden part._

_Warning, language at the end of this chapter might be bordering on the M rating. The jokes there were just too good to not tell. But I've seen other T-rated fics talk just as vulgar so hopefully there's no problem.  
_

Chapter 23: How Tsunade Celebrates In Konoha

Tsunade was in such a good mood from what Akane had caused she gave all shinobi the day off, only being required to do something if the village or their families were in danger. Besides, there were only D-rank missions available that day anyway and none couldn't wait until tomorrow. Notices were given out to all ninja to relax and not to even think about getting rid of the paint on the mountain under penalty of a session with Ibiki. She also told Naruto and Hinata not to even think of punishing her for this little act, and to decide when her birthday was going to be.

When night came a little get-together was held for the hokage, attended by Naruto, Hinata, Shizune, Sakura, and several other medics and ninjas close to Tsunade. Akane asked to come and Tsunade almost let her, but Naruto pointed out there would be more boring 'grown-up talk' and he didn't want her surrounded by a bunch of people trying to destroy their livers one sip at a time. So the fox girl ended up having to be somewhere else for the night. Hanabi volunteered to watch her over at Naruto's place, and since Hinata didn't mind, he agreed.

Naruto left the apartment with Hinata to go to one of Tsunade's favorite bars, but not after telling Akane and Hanabi what he would and wouldn't allow to have happen while he was gone. When he did leave, Hanabi closed the door with a mischievous grin. "So then, while the adults go off and have fun, we'll have our own here won't we?"

"Got something in mind Obasan?" Akane asked curiously.

"Why don't we got embarrass one of them where they are?" Hanabi suggested, not really serious at all.

"Already got that taken care of."

"What? Really? How?" Hanabi asked.

"I knew there would be a lot of drinking so I had a shadow clone pick one random bottle and mixed a laxative in it and put it back with the others. So the only question is which adult will be the unlucky one." Akane explained playfully.

Hanabi at first just stared at her, but then she just couldn't hold in the laughter anymore and fell down clutching her sides. "Oh this I _gotta_ see. I don't care which one it is, I have to see this one." She then grabbed Akane's arm and practically hauled her off before she could protest.

When they were heading down the streets, Hanabi suddenly had to stop. "Something wrong, Obasan?" Akane asked.

"Umm... which bar did they go to?"

Akane shrugged. "I thought you knew. You were the one leading just now after all."

"Hi Hanabi-chan, what you doing here this time of night?" Konohamaru greeted the Hyuuga heiress, surprised to see her since she was usually at the Hyuuga compound by now.

"Oh, hi Konohamaru-kun. I'm just watching my niece." She told him, trying to hide her blush. Like Hinata with Naruto, Hanabi had known Konohamaru since the academy and had a bit of a crush on him. Apparently both Hyuuga heiresses had the same taste in men. She didn't say anything about it, not due to shyness, but fear that he really liked Moegi instead. One can just imagine how she felt when their genin teams had been assigned and Moegi was paired with her crush instead of her. Not that she disliked her own team mates, but like Hinata she wanted to be with someone specific.

Akane decided to butt in. "We're going to go watch some adult drink a laxative without knowing it. But we're not sure where they are just yet."

Konohamaru arched an eyebrow. "Some adult? Who?"

Akane shrugged. "Maybe Baa-chan, Shizune-obasan, Cotton Candy Head, or even Otou-san or Okaa-san or someone else. No idea which one will pick the unlucky bottle." She then tried sniffing the area without being obvious about it.

"Sounds cruel." Konohamaru said, then grew a grin. "Mind if I watch."

"Not at all." Hanabi said. "If we can find them in time."

"I'm sure they went this way." Akane pointed west, having located a familiar scent trailing off that direction.

Using her nose, Akane led Hanabi and Konohamaru towards the bar where Tsunade and the others were gathered. Luckily it was like Ichiraku's in structure so you could see who was in it from the outside under a low curtain. The three observers went on top of a nearby roof to watch and see which would be frantic and having any internal problems.

* * *

"So how old are you now, baa-chan? Twenty-nine?" Naruto asked before taking a drink. Everyone seated had been given one of the many bottles given to Tsunade earlier, which she decided to share just for tonight. Too bad Akane couldn't see who had which one, because then she'd be grinning like a fox in a hen house.

"If you want to stay healthy you'll go with that." The elderly woman told him with no real menace, but a stern face indeed. "And when are you two going to tell everyone the big new?"

"What big news?" Sakura asked after a sip.

"T-that... would kind of spoil the sur-surprise, wouldn't it, Sakura-san?" Hinata replied, slightly embarrassed at the implication but in a good way. So far she was the only one who hadn't taken a drink, not one for alcohol.

"What, you gonna tell us all you're engaged?" Sakura asked, joking around, not believing it. When she saw them both slightly tense and look at her, her eyes instinctively went to Hinata's left hand, where she noticed the ring for the first time. "Seriously? I was just kidding, but you're really doing it?"

Out of all their friends, Naruto was most worried about Sakura's reaction to this. Not due to his old crush on her; he had long ago outgrown that almost right after he brought Tsunade back to Konoha and she healed Sasuke. His worry was more because of her uncertain feelings towards him. When she claimed she had fallen for him when they were sixteen, he felt she was just saying that to spare him from his self-imposed burden regarding Sasuke. Also he feared that she might leave him for Sasuke if the opportunity came and he just couldn't deal with that heartbreak. Most importantly of all, even if by chance she really did mean what she said, the fact was she had taken too long to come to terms with it and he had already agreed to try a relationship with Hinata. No way was he going to just leave her for an old flame the way he feared Sakura might.

Hinata decided to spare Naruto the ordeal of telling the pink-haired kunoichi this. "Y-yes, we are, Sakura-san. We love each other and this is what we want. Please... don't tell the others, let us handle that ourselves."

Sakura slowly smiled. "No problem. Way to go you two. You make a great couple, and besides Hinata, you're probably better at handling that little girl than I would be. She got me with paint the other day and I still can't get all the orange out of my hair." The color was faded because of repeated washings, but if one looked closely they could see some orange mixed with Sakura's natural pink.

"Well at least that was the worst of it." Shizune commented.

"Oh no it wasn't." Sakura added.

Everyone turned to look at her. "Really? What else did Akane-chan do?"

"Well, I have no idea how she did it, because I couldn't see with all the paint on my head, but somehow she... got orange paint in my underwear too. I actually looked like a natural orange for a bit." She shamefully admitted.

"She gave you a painted wedgie?" Naruto asked.

"Pretty much." Sakura answered, taking a longer drink this time.

"Whoa that's a bummer." Shizune remarked.

Tsunade smirked at nothing, already buzzed from a day of chugging beer. "I swear that girl's going to add some much needed life here. And I can't wait until she makes genin. She's gonna make one helluva ninja with her potential." Then she turned to Naruto. "Think you can handle sending her out on missions when you're hokage, gaki?"

"I'm more worried about when she starts liking boys."

Hinata put her hand on his shoulder. "I'll handle that part, koi. It's more of a mother job anyway."

* * *

"What's taking so long?" Konohamaru asked, getting bored.

"Maybe they didn't get it yet." Hanabi suggested.

"Any way to see for sure?" Akane asked.

Hanabi shook her head. "Not without going down there. And since we're just genin we'd be told to leave. The whole 'Old enough to kill, old enough to drink' thing with ninja apparently isn't as literal as most think it is."

"So all we can do is wait?" Akane asked.

"Hey, I think something's happening." Konohamaru said, getting all three to look back down.

* * *

"Hey, is something wrong?" Hinata asked when someone in their group started groaning and clutching their stomach.

"Ugh... I think something I ate isn't agreeing with me." They moaned, then felt their bowels clench and gurgle. "I've gotta go now." They then ran out before waiting to hear anything.

* * *

Even though they knew it would happen, Akane, Hanabi, and Konohamaru were speechless to see Naruto be the one to dash out of the bar and head for a restroom like his life depended on it. Once they couldn't see him, Konohamaru was the first to lightly laugh, and Hanabi followed. Akane stayed silent, but she did chuckle a little.

"Can't believe it was Boss! He fell for a prank at his daughter's hand! Classic!" Konohamaru said thru his laughter. To him this was the definition of irony.

"I'm just glad it wasn't nee-chan." Hanabi commented. "You okay Akane-chan?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I already knew he might be the one. Gotta admit it is funny, but to be honest I was kinda hoping for Pinkie instead."

"And what do you think you're doing here, young lady?" Hinata could be heard from behind them. She had gone outside shortly after Naruto did to follow him, but heard Konohamaru laughing up on the roof. Thinking something was up, she went on top and saw all three of them.

Akane slowly turned to see her adopted mother upset with her arms crossed. "Umm... nothing, Okaa-san. Just... wondering what you were doing."

"Sure." Hinata didn't buy it. "Now tell me about this prank."

Too bad she didn't have a cinnamon roll on her this time. "Umm... I thought Baa-chan and Otou-san might get a kick out of it."

"Oh, I'm sure he's getting something out of it alright. Now go home right now. Hanabi, you stay with her." Both younger girls nodded. Hanabi was surprised to see such conviction in her older sister's voice for once. Apparently she _really_ didn't tolerate it when Naruto was victimized.

"I'm outta here. Bye Hanabi-chan." Konohamaru said before he disappeared.

Hinata didn't think much of that, more focused on the other two. "You two get to the apartment right now. Me and Naruto will decide what to do when we get back."

Both girls slowly nodded and headed back, heads down. Akane tried giving Hinata the sad puppy eyes, but it didn't work. So she sighed and went home to await her punishment while Hinata went back to the bar.

* * *

"Anything wrong?" Sakura asked as Hinata landed on the road, standing outside the bar.

"No, just taking care of some hooligans." The oldest Hyuuga heiress answered.

"A certain redhead won't happen to be one of them, now would it?" Tsunade asked, stepping outside too. Hinata's silence said everything. "Thought so."

"I don't know how you can handle her, Hinata." Sakura stated.

Hinata just shrugged it off. "She's a lot like Naruto, that's why I can."

"You've sure got weird tastes." The medic nin commented.

Hinata gave her a stern look. "You're one to talk. You fawned over some unstable guy who admitted he just wanted to kill someone all because you felt he was dark and mysterious."

"Yeah, the guy was just a lousy needledick." One of the other attending guests mouthed off.

"Actually, that would be complimenting him. A more appropriate term would be thumbtack-dick." Hinata remarked. Everyone gave her a confused and startled look, making her sigh sadly. "Byakugan, remember? I can't control what I look at. I admit I d-did use it... once or twice... to ch-check Naruto out l-like that, and the Uchiha was occasionally in my view-range too. And let's just say he was the real dead last."

Sakura just blanched at hearing this while a plastered Tsunade laughed her ass off. Even Shizune and the others nearby laughed a little at hearing this. "Hi-Hinata, don't you think you might be exaggerating a little?"

"No Sakura-san,_ this_ is exaggerating: His 'morning wood' is a splinter." Hinata responded.

Tsunade lost the ability to stand up after that one and nearly puked from laughing so hard.


	24. Chapter 24

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Naruto would have met Yugito, maybe in the chuunin exam, and become her friend.  
_

Chapter 24: An Eventful Chance For Akane

Akane was indeed punished for misbehaving, and this time it wasn't dealing with some fleas. To really teach her a lesson, Naruto and Hinata made it so she had to attend a session with Gai and his team while they did some work outs to stay fit and coordinated. And if that wasn't bad enough, she was told to join in with them if asked to. Akane got on her knees and tearily begged for anything but that, but they stayed adamant.

So here she was the next day, sitting on a tree stump as she watched Team Nine go thru their routines, all the while keeping a cautious eye on Gai. At least Noburo was attending too so she had some decent company. Like Akane, he couldn't get enrolled in the academy until the next term, which was still a bit away from now. The blue-haired boy was leaning against the stump instead of sitting on it, fiddling with some kunais Tenten had given him previously. "They make a good team don't they?"

Akane shrugged "They've got good skills, no doubt about that. But I still pray I don't get either of those two as my sensei when I'm older."

"Personally I'm hoping for Nee-chan. You?"

Akane had to think about it. "Well, I would say Otou-san, but he'll be hokage by then so he can't. Maybe Okaa-san, but I'm not sure she will be allowed to because we're family. If she can that's great. If not, then no idea. But as long as it's not Green Thing One or Thing Two, or Smut Lover."

"What makes you so sure your father's going to be the next hokage?" Noburo casually asked.

Akane slowly turned to give him a flat look with a small amount of KI. "Because he is the strongest and no one deserves it more than him."

"No offense, but aren't you a little biased there?"

Akane took a deep breath. "Maybe, but it's still true. And I'm going to be the hokage after him."

Noburo scoffed. "What is it, some sort of family tradition?"

Akane smiled. "Actually, it kinda is. My grandmother is the godaime, my grandfather was the yondaime, and the sandaime was Otou-san's adopted grandfather."

Noburo gave her a wide-eyed surprised look. "Seriously? Three generations?"

Akane confidently nodded. "Four if you count Otou-san, who's going to be the true rokudaime." Danzo might be mentioned in the history books later on, but he would never be remembered as the real Rokudame Hokage, due to his short term and traitorous ambitions. "And five if you count me."

"Counting yourself now is a little egotistical." Noburo stated.

"Doubt I can do it?"

The blue-haired boy just shrugged. "Maybe you can, but you're coming across as big-headed to me."

Akane stood up. "Maybe you'd change your mind after a little spar."

Noburo smirked. "Sounds good. I've been wanting to see what you can do since we met."

"Same for you." Akane admitted. "Any rules?"

"How about the two sweetest words a ninja knows?" Noburo suggested.

"Free ramen?" Akane asked eagerly, cutting him off and starting to drool. If her tails were visible they'd be wagging. At seeing and hearing this they captured Tenten's attention.

Noburo almost facefaulted. "No, noodle girl, I meant Anything Goes."

"Oh." Akane replied, actually disappointed. Then she got an idea. "Okay, but if I win, you have to buy me some ramen. If you win, I'll get you some of that okonomiyaki stuff you like."

Noburo shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"Wait a minute here." Tenten told them as she walked closer. "If you're going to do that, make it limited to one serving. I've heard how much ramen you can eat, little girl."

"What's going on, Tenten?" Lee asked as he saw her approach the two kids.

"Just a little match about to happen." The bun-haired kunoichi explained.

Hearing this got Gai riled up. "Good enthusiasm you two! Show off your brightly burning flames of youth to their full extent to cement your lifelong friendship!"

Akane cringed, really wanting to rip the jounin's eyebrows off and shove them down his throat to get him to stop that. 'Was this nut-job hit in the head too many times? And what the hell are 'flames of youth'? Sounds like heartburn for kids. That's nothing to cheer for.'

Noburo however smiled and just had to give a thumbs up. "Will do, Gai-sensei."

Akane looked horrified. 'Dear Kami he's corrupted you.'

Noburo got in a regular taijutsu stance. "Ready, Red?"

Akane relaxed, and didn't bother to take up a stance at all. "Yep. Bring it on Blue. I'm not gonna lose if ramen's the prize."

Tenten raised her arms. "Ready?" Neither objected, so she threw her arms down. "Begin."

Akane quickly crouched like an animal and pounced to test Noburo's response. He stepped to the side to dodge and took off his bandanna, letting his hair start to grow quickly again. He preferred to fight girls with his hair instead of fists if he had to. But before it gained a full inch in length, Akane turned toward him and tried to slash it off with her claws. Noburo used a jutsu that turned it into quills, meaning that even though he lost some hair, she got a few cuts herself. She paused to lick the blood away, giving him the time to get some distance and let his hair get longer as the quills relaxed.

Akane formed the ram sign and created fourteen shadow clones to ambush the young boy. He pulled out his scissor sword and cut them all, making them disappear. When he was temporarily unable to see anything thru the smoke from the clones, Akane created more and had them ambush him again. She cried out 'Akane Uzumaki Barrage' and used Naruto's unique clone taijutsu maneuver on him, but non-hazardously. Noburo formed a protective sphere of hair around himself in mid-air to soften his landing, and judging by the give it showed upon impact, it wasn't a perfect shield.

When the hair released, Noburo could be seen making his forked prayer hand sign. "Ninja Art: Octopus Jutsu." His already long hair got a little longer and now appeared to cluster together to make five tendrils coming from his head, moving around like an octopus's tentacles. He then sent them to ensnare his sparring opponent.

Instead of countering, Akane stood rigidly and spread her arms out like a cross with her fingers pointing up. Her body glowed a soft red, her feet started spinning, and before the hair could reach her, a red chakra dome had emerged with her spinning inside it, eyes closed and mouth grinning contently.

Everyone in Team Nine watching this dropped their jaws and anything else they might have been holding at the moment. Neji was the most aghast. Lee was the one who managed to say what they all were thinking. "Is... is that... what I think it is?"

"No doubt about it. That _is _a Hyuuga Rotation." Neji answered, no small amount of awe or wonder in his voice by a long shot.

"But how can she do this?" Tenten asked.

Neji didn't answer, at least not out loud. 'Well, it's not like the byakugan is mandatory for this maneuver. But still, no one outside the main branch besides myself should know how to perform this technique. Did Hinata-sama teach her? No, that's unlikely. Even if the girl is for all basic purposes her daughter, that isn't legally official yet to the best of my knowledge. And even if it was, this girl isn't considered a member of the main Hyuuga family. Hinata-sama wouldn't dare risking their anger at teaching others the family art.'

Akane stopped spinning and saw that she had kept away Noburo's hair but didn't really damage it. So he got ready to try and ensnare her again like before. She was too dizzy to try doing another Rotation, so she stepped back and got into a Gentle Fist stance. Now everyone watching was even more curious, for it looked like she planned on using the Gentle Fist without the Byakugan, a biological impossibility. But instead, she created two long thin chakra blades sticking out of her palms. "Protective Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms." She then swung her arms around swiftly, slicing all the surrounding hair like a mad barber. Neji was again amazed to see this girl do such a thing.

Noburo sensed his hair techniques weren't going to be so effective anymore, so he resorted to throwing kunais to divert her attention. She blocked them still using Hinata's original technique. Noburo retreated his hair but kept it ready and growing to strike again, and Akane stopped her current method, pausing to catch her breath. Using the Protective Eight Trigrams without the byakugan meant she had to resort to just randomly attacking everything around her really fast, so that wore her out a little. Her shoulders ached, so she tried thinking of what to do next that wouldn't add more stress to them.

Noburo had no such problem and saw her try to massage her shoulders to relieve the ache. He made tendrils out of his hair and tried to ensnare her again. Akane just dodged this time but he was prepared for that and had his hair snake her direction. In less than seven seconds he had her tied up effectively. Akane struggled to get out and transformed her nails into claws, cutting thru the hair around her hands but that was it. Noburo lifted her into the air above him as if to taunt her. "Looks like I win, Red."

Akane wasn't ready to surrender just yet however and desperately tried to think up an escape plan. Transforming didn't sound like a good idea since if she got bigger she might be strangled and if she got smaller she got get trapped in the mesh of blue hair. So she struggled to put her hands together to form a hand sign, which she managed to do with great difficulty. "Shadow Clone Jutsu." Numerous Akane's appeared around her and used their claws to tear her free. One tripped Noburo from behind so he didn't try that again right away, making him fall on his back.

The clones dispersed before Akane realized she was still in mid-air. So she was unable to stop her fall, and landed right on Noburo. Everybody's eyes widened, including those of the two kids, when they saw that because of the landing Akane was inadvertently kissing Noburo. Gai, Lee, and Tenten just smiled at seeing this while Neji kept a neutral expression.

Akane jolted upright and slowly touched her lips. It was probably a good sign that she didn't act revolted or tried wiping her mouth. If anything she looked more like she couldn't really believe that actually happened, with a tomato red blush. Noburo sat up and gave her the same look back. 'Did... did I just... actually... k-kiss... a boy?' Akane slowly thought, and then did the only think that seemed natural at the moment.

She fainted.

* * *

Akane regained consciousness sometime later. She knew she had been out for a bit since she saw she was in her room with Hinata sitting by. "Wh... what happened?"

Hinata gave her a warm look. "You just passed out so Niisan brought you here. Told me quite an interesting story about what happened while you were there." Akane's blush almost matched her hair. 'Guess Naruto isn't the only influence on her after all.'

"Wh-what did he t-tell you?" Akane stuttered, wanting to crawl into a hole somewhere.

"Well, he said you and that nice young boy were just chatting then you had a friendly fight with him, which ended with you passing out. But not from exhaustion." Hinata was enjoying this, mostly because this all reminded her of her own past, making her feel closer to her adopted daughter. That and she would have killed for such a thing to have happened between her and Naruto when they were younger. "So, did you like it.?"

"Okaa-san!" Akane shouted, overwhelmed with embarrassment, but not shame or disgust.

Hinata's grin grew slightly. "I'll take that as a yes." The young girl just dove under the covers to hide. Hinata moved a little closer and patted her back slowly. "Don't worry about it. Just think, in a few years you'll be dying for things like that to happen. By the way, I'm proud you were able to use those techniques without me actually teaching you. How did you learn them by the way?"

Akane answered, but stayed hidden. "I just watched you use them. It wasn't that hard to figure out how you do them. So I just practiced myself."

"Your father would be really proud now." Hinata stated. "Of course, he'd be asking if you were planning on being around that boy more now."

"Just go away." Akane told. Hinata could actually hear the little girl blushing.

"Alright." Hinata said as she stood up. "Dinner will be ready in an hour or so. Let us know when you're ready to come back outside again." With a small giggle, she quietly left the room. 'Was I ever that bad when I was her age?'

* * *

Far away at the Valley of the End, Madara Uchiha came to a stop. He looked around the area, feeling a bit of nostalgia due to his history at this scene, and decided that not was a good time to let his captives back into this world. So he put away a small orange book he wouldn't let anyone see him with, and opened a space-time portal that allowed Sasuke, Dansue, and Ichi to come out.

Sasuke looked more moody than usual, but that might be because of the new scars on his face courtesy of Akane in Wave. Dansue looked peppy as always, but also concerned. Neither two were connected by their shadows anymore. Ichi saw that even though he was in the shade of the cliff, the sun was still out, even if low in the sky and about to set. Nevertheless, he freaked out. Before Dansue could try to comfort him, he made several hand signs and cried out "Twilight Style: Caterpillar Jutsu." After that, shadows from the trees, cliffside, and the other people reached out to surround him until he looked like a black mummy.

Sasuke snorted and called him a wimp, while Dansue frowned and set up the tent. When done, she picked up the young boy and placed him inside then zipped it up. "There. You're out of the light now, Ichi-chan." She heard a comfortable reply, then turned to look at the two Uchihas. "We're not going anywhere for a while."

"Doesn't matter. It'll probably take us until tomorrow night to get to the village anyway." Madara commented, then turned to Sasuke. "Our objective is to acquire the nine-tails host alive. Nothing else."

Sasuke looked apathetic to that and Dansue just shrugged. "All I want is to fight Danzo. What you two do is no concern of mine."

"You're going to do your part and buy us time to find our target. No exceptions." Sasuke told her, earning a glare from the electric girl.

'I can only wonder how this is going to go. Oh well, failure is not an option. I want that bijuu contained.' Madara thought privately.


	25. Chapter 25

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, the current mizukage wouldn't have a kekkei genkai. That just makes no sense to me given Kiri's recent history._

Chapter 25: Bad Things Begin For Akane

The next day Naruto and Hinata gathered all their friends together to tell them they were engaged. Ino and Tenten squealed in joy while the rest just offered some congratulations to the couple. Chouji asked who was catering and Kiba asked where they were going to honeymoon, earning him a hit on the back of his head from Sakura. Shikamaru asked not to be forced into doing any of the preparations and Lee shouted about how joyous this line of events was for them all. Ino raised the question of who the maid of honor was going to be, and all kunoichis present, except Hinata, argued with each other on who it should naturally be. No guys did the same regarding the best man position however, but Kiba did bring up the issue regarding the bachelor party.

Akane meanwhile was being watched over elsewhere. Due to recent behavior most everyone felt it was best if she wasn't left unsupervised. So while her parents were busy mingling with their friends, she was with Hiashi at the Hyuuga estate. She could have gone anywhere really since her parents weren't planning on being out for too long. However, her adoptive grandfather, the only one still alive by the way, insisted she be with him for some time. Hinata had a good idea why and hoped everything would work out for the girl. Especially since Hanabi was out for team drills and thus couldn't encourage her to act out again.

When they were alone, Hiashi and Akane sat down on the porch in the backyard looking at the decorative koi pond. Akane thought it was beautiful and the plants smelled terrific. And if she hadn't been taught otherwise, she'd probably be trying to claw one of the fish out of the water to eat like an animal. Instead she just sat down next to Hiashi in a completely relaxed and informal pose, as opposed to his own formal appearance. To give them something to do as they sat there for the time, the Hyuuga head drank some green tea while the Uzumaki girl guzzled down a soft drink she had sneaked in.

"So Akane-chan, are you happy your parents are going to be wed soon?"Hiashi asked politely.

Akane shrugged. "Sure. But honestly I don't see what'll be different after that except that Okaa-san will be around more often. I like that, but outside that I see no reason to get excited."

Hiashi nodded in understanding. "Well, how about someday having a little brother or sister?"

"That I like a lot. Not sure which one I want more though. A brother might be more fun to play around with, but a sister can be too." Akane mused.

Hiashi had a good idea what she meant by 'play around with' and grinned friendly. "Planning on being a little hellraiser like your dad, huh?"

Akane grinned like a fox. "From what I've heard, I already am. And Baa-chan told me never to stop."

'Of course she'd say that considering the mountain.' Hiashi thought to himself. The phrase 'Give me sake today' was still up there on the monument, and Tsunade had one Anbu team go up to make sure it didn't fade away yet. Of course, the amount of liquor she was being given was much smaller than on that first day, probably due to a growing alcohol shortage in the village, but it was still coming in. Apparently some people thought it was Hokage's orders rather than the graffiti of a small child.

"Don't forget you need to train hard too if you want to be as good as Naruto-san." Hiashi added. She nodded, and he continued. "Speaking of which, I heard from Neji that you've already shown remarkable talent, almost prodigy-like even."

"Prodigy-like?" Akane asked, not understanding the term.

"Meaning you're naturally very talented, practically born for the task." The young girl showed she understood now. "Mind showing me some skills?"

"Anything in particular you want to see?"

"How about that Rotation move and sixty-four palm move you copied from my daughter?" Hiashi asked.

Akane gave him an uncertain look. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, I'm just curious to see if you actually did learn to do those just by watching someone else." The Hyuuga head told her.

Akane slowly stood up. "O-okay then. Can you set up some weapons or something so I can do it right?"

Hiashi went to go get some kunais to encourage her, praying she didn't actually get hurt. If she did he didn't know who he should be more afraid of, Naruto or Hinata. 'Well, if Hinata is anything like her mother, and kami knows she is, then probably her.' He thought to himself. Nevertheless, he got what his granddaughter asked for and was ready to use them.

Akane didn't really need any weapons thrown at her to effectively show off the Rotation. All she did was close her eyes, spread her arms to make a cross formation, and spin around fast while emitting chakra from all the points on her body. In no time she had created a chakra dome like a Hyuuga could. Hiashi was impressed at her understanding of the technique without actually having it explained to her, and curious regarding the red color of the chakra. She stopped when she got sick from spinning, a natural side effect of the jutsu that even Hyuuga got and took years of practice to overcome.

Akane plopped on the ground trying to remember which direction was up, her spinning eyes unable to give her an answer. Hiashi patiently waited for her to regain her equilibrium. "How was that?" She asked as she sat up, holding her head. This time affected her more than last time probably because then she was running on adrenaline and couldn't really feel the full effects.

"Impressive. I myself couldn't do that for that long until I was thirteen." Hiashi told her. "I am curious to why yours is red. Making it have a color is unnecessary and a waste of chakra."

"Umm... I wasn't trying to give it a color, Jii-san." Akane replied.

Hiashi arched his eyebrows. 'Then that was the natural color of her chakra? But I've never heard of a human with red chakra before. What could that mean?'

Akane stood up and brushed off her clothes. "Okay, I'm ready for the next one. Throw those up so they'll land on me."

Hiashi complied and threw a dozen kunai into the air above her. They soon pointed down and looking ready to impale her. Akane readied her chakra and cried out "Protective Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms." Chakra blades came out of her palms and she swung them around swiftly to knock all the kunais away from her. This display only lasted a moment but it impressed Hiashi greatly. Sadly, because Akane lacks the byakugan, she couldn't see all the kunais and one managed to slip past her defense, cutting her deeply on her right forearm and making her cry out. Since she was wearing a short sleeve red dress there was no damage to her outfit, just her flesh.

Hiashi rushed to her to check on the damage. It was bad, bleeding and surely going to scar. But before he could ask for someone who might be able to hear him to go get the medical supplies, he noticed that the edges of the wound were glowing red and starting to heal. This caught all of his attention so he didn't notice she reached into her pocket to pull out the specially-made healing balm that Hinata had given her not too long ago. Akane just put a dab on her already healing wound, wincing a little as she rubbed it in. This apparently stimulated the wound to heal faster, and just as quickly as it had been cut into her, it was gone. No scar, but the new flesh was tinted pink for now.

Akane acted like it was nothing, but Hiashi wondered whether or not this child was truly blood-related to Naruto. Eitherway, he foresaw her surpassing him in the future, and quite possibly someday actually being the hokage after him. That is if Konohamaru didn't beat her to it, as Hanabi had pointed out.

"So what do you think, Jii-san?" Akane asked when done with her arm and pocketing the balm.

"You sure exceeded my expectations, Akane-chan. I must say if you were a true Hyuuga you would be considered the next great prodigy after Neji." Hiashi responded.

"Too bad I don't have those eyes of yours, then I could do that chakra point hitting thing you guys do. All I can do is go thru the motions." Akane thought aloud.

Two of the older members of the Hyuuga clan council came outside and were clearly seen by Hiashi and Akane. Their faces were difficult to read. One was a man who had a mustache and was grey and balding stepped forward. "Hiashi-sama, just what are you doing? Are you actually teaching an outsider our clan style?"

Hiashi lightly frowned and stood with his arms resting at his sides between them and Akane. "No, I wasn't, Hisuke-sama. She evidently learned those feats on her own just by watching attentively. I was merely confirming the extent of her abilities."

"What you should be doing is enforcing the clan's right to punish those that dare insult us by trying to steal our methods." A senior woman next to the man named Hisuke commented. Her voice sounded like someone who had smoked regularly when young and occasionally still did.

Akane stepped backward when the word 'punish' was mentioned, but Hiashi stepped forward instead. "Punish for stealing? She's just a child, Hiori-sama. And children learn by imitating. How the hell do you think you learn the Gentle Fist yourselves?"

"Even so, this girl is not a member of either of the Hyuuga clan branches and thus is unallowed to know such things." Hisuke countered. "We need to erase such knowledge from her mind to ensure our secrets don't leak out."

Hiashi crossed his arms. "You can't do that. And before you say anything-"

"You know full well it is within our rights to demand this, Hiashi-sama." Hiori stated fiercely.

"And you know it is within _my _rights to refute this." Hiashi stated back. "And as I was going to say before you cut me off, this girl is under the custody of my daughter, who has every right to teach her adoptive daughter what she knows, whether or not she has the byakugan. So even if you do erase her memories of these maneuvers she'll just relearn them later."

"It must be done. We demand it." Hisuke declared.

Everyone then felt a kage-level amount of KI coming from Akane, who looked as mad as an Uchiha being showed up. "No one's doing _anything_ to my memories period! And if anyone tries, I'll rip off a part of your body barehanded. And I don't know which one I'll pick but it will hurt and you will cry."

"You are in no position to order us around brat." Hisuke frowned at her, having no effect as her KI was almost smothering.

"And you can't tell me what I can and can't know." Akane argued. "And if you make me forget and I relearn, you just gonna make me forget _again_? I'll just relearn all over again. What you're wanting is completely pointless."

"Rules are rules impudent girl." Hiori told her sternly.

Akane didn't understand the put-down but didn't need to. "Otou-san said rules are only worth following if they make sense. And yours doesn't." By now her KI was significantly less, but still there as if on guard for something she didn't like.

"She's right. And I've already told you she has the right to know this style. Besides, without the byakugan there's little she can actually learn properly so what are you afraid of?" Hiashi told the elders. "And if I hear you try to do anything to her mentality I will remind you that my power in his clan is not purely political."

Hiashi, like all Hyuuga, was not one to make an idle threat and the elders knew it. Sadly, all their power _was _political so if faced with a fighter they could do nothing themselves. They wisely chose to drop the matter and just walked away. The clan head placed his hand of Akane's head comfortingly. "Sorry for that matter. Sad to say some people like to believe the world works with their own interests in mind."

"I know. Those two crones weren't the first ones like that I've seen. And I gave the others a piece of my mind when they tried something like that." The young girl replied.

Hiashi smiled at the girl's innocent carefree spirit, something one usually didn't see in the Hyuuga compound in anyone over four years of age. He didn't want to see that lost, and decided the same thing regarding any children Hinata would later have with Naruto. He had wondered if maybe he should give the couple a house on the estate as a wedding gift, but if they lived there Akane and her future siblings would be surrounded by Hyuugas all day and be expected to comply with their lifestyle. Now he knew his daughter's family needed to live off the estate, where Hyuuga clan policy couldn't apply to them.

Before he could think much more on the subject, he felt a strange surge of chakra coming from north of the compound. He activated his doujutsu and saw seven foxes, twice as big as normal ones and all with multiple tails, all swarm into the area. Akane must have sensed them too and got defensive. The foxes pounced and landed to make a circle around the two, and they didn't stay still for a moment longer than necessary. All seven lunged at Akane, leaving Hiashi alone, and managed to bite her. She yelled and tried to tear them off, and Hiashi managed to knock one off the girl. Before he could do anything to the others, the six foxes disappeared in a puff of smoke, and they took Akane with them.

Akane Uzumaki had just been kidnapped by foxes.

_Please don't hate me. You'll find out more on her fate soon I swear._


	26. Chapter 26

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Kurenai would have two sleeves most of the time._

Chapter 26: Grim News About Akane's Disappearance

Hinata was still with Sakura, Ino, and Tenten talking about wedding things while the guys had been gone for some time. Actually, a more apt description would be that the girls wanted to go walking around and keep chatting with Hinata but the guys just weren't into that sort of thing. Hinata understood that this was something men just couldn't get as excited about and told Naruto if he wanted to go off and have some fun his own way he could. He gratefully thanked her and the other guys followed suit.

Naruto was out for a stroll, in no hurry to go get Akane because she might actually enjoy spending some time with her grandfather. Half of the other guys in his group had left to go do their own things, but Kiba, Chouji, and Shikamaru had stayed with him for some company and maybe a few more questions that were coming to mind now. They came to a stop at a vending machine by a convenience store to get a drink, and Kiba was the first to ask what was on his mind.

"So Naruto, bet you're looking forward to being with Hinata privately eh?"

The orange-clad ninja wondered if maybe there was more to this one than just polite small talk. Kiba wasn't exactly the politest of his comrades and there were times Naruto wondered if he himself fancied Hinata. "Are you asking about what we'll do in the bedroom?"

Kiba just shrugged nonchalantly. "C'mon, the girls aren't around; it's just us men we can talk about this at least."

"Well, maybe some stuff is best left unsaid." Shikamaru commented. "I'm sure Hinata-san wouldn't like it if she or one of the other girls had heard Naruto talking about their sex life just to fit in with the guys."

"So is that why you never told us about what you and Temari did around Valentine's Day?" Kiba asked.

Shikamaru looked like he had just seen Hidan come back from the grave. "W-what the...? What are you talking about?"

Kiba grinned playfully, showing off his fangs. "You may have been able to foul the others, but me and Akamaru could smell her all over you. No mistaking what that meant."

"Wait a minute. You and Temari-san actually did that?" Chouji asked his oldest friend.

Shikamaru sighed. "It's my own business guys. And besides, even if I wanted to brag about it, Temari-chan would beat me over the head for it. And that's if she was in a good mood." Then he turned to Naruto. "Word of advice man: Don't brag about your own trysts. Something tells me that Hinata-san might not be so gentle herself. And I wouldn't want to piss off a woman with X-ray eyes and the ability to kill with her fingertips."

"And yet you're in a relationship with a girl who can cut you in half with a swing off her arms. And if she doesn't kill you, her brother will." Naruto pointed out.

"He's got you there Shika." Chouji added.

Kiba relaxed against the wall of the building. "I don't know what you see in that chick. Personally I wouldn't want a mate who thinks she's the alpha."

"If there's one thing I've learned from Otou-san besides games and jutsu, it's that for humans, women _are _the alphas Kiba-san. And you can make things a lot less troublesome by not fighting it." Shikamaru stated, finishing with a light nod towards Naruto who got the message. "Besides, if women aren't the alphas, then why do _we_ have to ask _them_ to consent when proposing?"

"If that's not whipped I don't know what is." The Inuzuka boy thought aloud, trying to keep sounding macho.

Shikamaru just shrugged. "Well, good luck getting a girl yourself with that attitude."

Naruto chuckled, but stopped when he felt a chill for no reason. 'Why do I suddenly feel like something really bad just happened?'

* * *

Ino, Sakura, and Tenten had practically dragged Hinata into a dress shop to look over what to wear for the ceremony. They were led to the bridal section and all but made the Hyuuga heiress a life-size doll. She tried on about six outfits for the fun of it, their fun mostly because she already intended to wear her mother's dress that Hiashi had stored away for just such a thing. After they had settled down, Hinata asked them for ideas regarding the brides maids outfits, and they got fired up again. Each of the three girls had picked out different looks with different colors and argued whose looked better.

'Wonder what they're going to be like when it's time for their own weddings.' Hinata thought to herself as she sat down for a bit. 'Maybe that's why they're so energetic, because none of them are getting married yet so they're going crazy over me doing it.'

"Hinata! Tell Ino-pig here I'm not wearing a purple dress!" Sakura told the soon-to-be bride while holding up a red conservative dress.

Ino came up behind her holding a purple one that was a bit more showy but not sleazy. "And you think I'm wearing a red outfit that doesn't do my figure justice? There are going to be guys there too checking us out and that makes us look like uninteresting prudes."

"Well, yours might be a bit too daring. It's Hinata's day so she deserves the most attention you know." Tenten stated as she pulled out a yellow dress that was pleasing to the eye and allowed the girl wearing it to tease a guy who saw it. "Now this one might work."

"Yellow doesn't work on me. Clashes with my hair." Sakura pointed out.

Hinata sighed and put her hands behind her head to rest it. But a sudden chill down her spine made her sit up quickly. 'My women's intuition tells me something horrible just happened. What could it be?'

* * *

Naruto said goodbye to his friends as they left for home and headed towards the Hyuuga mansion to go get his daughter and wait for his fiancee to return. Before he got there, Neji came right up to him. "Naruto, thank kami I found you. You must come with me now to the estate. It's a very urgent matter."

"How urgent?" Naruto asked, wondering if something had happened.

"Perhaps it would be best if you were told there so you don't act irrational here." Neji commented and led him in a rush back to the mansion. They entered and saw Hiashi standing around by the koi pond looking bothered. "I've brought him Hiashi-sama. Now I'll try to find Hinata-sama." Hiashi nodded his approval, and Neji vanished.

"Naruto-san, you might want to sit down for this. Would you like for me to wait for Hinata to arrive too?" Hiashi started, trying to delay and soften the inevitable.

"What happened to Akane-chan?" Naruto firmly asked, still standing. He didn't need to be told that was what this was about. He and Hinata had just been called to the place they left their daughter at and she wasn't right there like she usually was when they picked her up from some place. Something bad had to have happened to her while he was away.

Hiashi sighed sadly, almost hesitantly, and this did nothing to comfort his future son-in-law. "Naruto-san, I have good news and bad news. I'll tell you the bad news first so the good news will make sense. You see, when Akane-chan was showing me a few of the skills she'd learned under yours and my daughter's care-"

"No offense Hiashi-sama, but please get to the point. I'm in no mood for build-up." Naruto gruffly interrupted, something most wouldn't dare do to the Hyuuga head.

He took no offense however; he was a father himself after all. "Akane-chan was just kidnapped, by what I can only presume to be demon foxes."

Naruto's body got rigid all of a sudden and his eyes were ready to pop out of his head. "Demon foxes?"

Hiashi nodded. "Seven foxes came out of nowhere and bit onto her like leeches, then they disappeared as if by shushin, taking her along with them. I believe they were demons because of their unnatural colors and multiple tails."

Naruto frowned. 'Have the demon foxes somehow found out about Akane? What are they planning? And where have they taken her?' "Wait, what's the good news?"

"Luckily for us I was able to knock one of the seven off her before they disappeared and I rendered it unconscious. Then I placed chakra restriction seals on it so it couldn't shushin away before we tried to get information out of it. It's locked away now in a room nearby, and maybe it can tell us just what's going on and how to get her back."

Naruto breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, thanks Hiashi-sama. Good thinking."

Neji then reappeared with an overly nervous Hinata. Hiashi thanked him and Neji left to go tell the rest in their group to try and locate the red haired girl if at all possible. Hiashi told his daughter what he just told the blond, and she broke out in tears. Naruto placed his arms around her shoulders to comfort her. Hiashi couldn't help but notice how attached they were to this strange girl that just happened to fall into their laps, and felt they would do just fine as a married couple.

Hinata wiped away her tears and gave her father the sternest look she had ever given him, or possibly anyone. "Where is this fox demon? Take me to it now." Her tone reminded Hiashi of the times his own wife would not take 'no' for an answer. Naturally Hiashi complied and led them into the room where a small green fox with four tails was bound and gagged but now conscious. It tried struggling but could only shake. "Father, place the anti-byakugan barrier up. Nothing in here leaves this room."

Hiashi nodded, both surprised and immensely proud of his timid daughter's new iron will, and placed up the barriers that cancelled out the effects of the byakugan. This was a feature in every room in the estate since the Hyuuga like their privacy and in a house full of people with x-ray eyes that was hard to get any other way. Once the barrier was up Hinata grabbed the fox by the scruff of its neck and raised it to eye level.

"What on earth were you trying to do? I know you can answer me." Hinata demanded just before she took the gag out. She figured if it was a demon then it could speak the human language, and even if it couldn't, it wouldn't be too hard to bring Kiba in to translate.

Apparently that wouldn't be necessary. "I was just following orders to grab the kit." The voice showed it was a male fox.

"Orders from who?" Naruto asked.

"The Council of Eight. It's a group of eight foxes, usually six-tails thru eight-tails, that assist Kyuubi-sama in governing our region and rule in her absence. They recently ordered her return when they found out she was no longer imprisoned inside you."

Naruto and Hinata shared a look of upset and fear, while Hiashi just looked confused. "Wait a minute. Naruto-san, you no longer have the demon inside you?"

Naruto and Hinata gave him a worried look, then glanced back at each other, each silently coming to an agreement. Naruto sighed as he turned back to the Hyuuga head. "Hiashi-sama, what I'm about to tell you never leaves this room _ever_. Clear?" Hiashi curiously nodded. "A few weeks ago I had a run-in on a mission with Hinata's team with one of Kiri's Seven Swordsman. The sword cut the seal on my stomach and for some reason the seal disappeared. The Kyuubi did escape my body, but it turned into a small child instead of a fox. That child... is Akane-chan."

"But Akane-chan isn't the Kyuubi, Father." Hinata butted in before her father could interject here. "She has absolutely no memory of anything before being released and Konoha's best interrogators already confirmed it. Akane-chan is _a _kyuubi, not _the _Kyuubi, and don't ever imply otherwise or I _will_ hate you forever."

Hiashi didn't reply or move for a moment, taking all this in. The little girl his daughter was so affectionate to and considered her own was the greatest demon known to man reborn? And she was a completely different personality than the one that tried to destroy Konoha over eighteen years ago? Well, that last one was clear as crystal, for there was no way the Akane he knew was the same identity of the previous Kyuubi. But the same entity, even if different mentality? Rather than ask how all this was possible, he focused more on if he should accept it all.

The look on his oldest child's face told him that. "Akane is Akane, and no one else. That little girl may be a hellraiser, but she's no monster. Instead, she's my granddaughter. So don't worry, Hinata."

Hinata smiled, but Naruto kept giving the green fox a pissed off look. "Tell me how this fox council found this out and what they want with her anyway."

The fox looked defiant now. "And why should I?"

Hinata gave him an icy expression and lifted him by the neck to her eye level. "Because if you don't I'll snap your neck here and now and turn you into a pelt." And to prove she wasn't bluffing, she grabbed a kunai and placed it underneath the fox's body, the point pressing right at the fox's privates. A small twitch or even a sneeze by either one of them would result in a very, very painful wound for the fox.

'Whoa, where did that come come?' Hiashi asked himself as he saw his daughter act so fierce.

'Note to self: Never ever be the target of her bad moods.' Naruto told himself.

The fox did what any male would have done in this situation and folded like origami. "A-fox-was-in-the-area-saw-her-and-told-the-rulers-abo..."

"Slow down." Hinata told him, no more gentle then before.

The fox squeaked in fear. "A fox who happened to see her contacted our lands and told us about the nine-tailed one being free again. Who it was I have no idea. Some others who work with the council already checked up on her but she refused to cooperate, saying something about already having a home and family, and they didn't want tot accept that. So they've been preparing something that will destroy the personality that currently dwells with the Kyuubi's body and bring back the previous one."

Now it looked like Naruto wanted to snap this animal's neck too. "Take us to her. We won't allow it."

The fox quickly had to think of the best answer for this one. "I'm sorry, but unless you have a summoning bond with the multi-tailed foxes you can't get there in time. It's impossible." Hinata looked ready to cry at the thought of loosing Akane forever and lowered the fox. Naruto however looked as undaunted as ever and ready to make good on Hinata's threat. "B-but... if you let me go, I can get there right away and bring her back to you."

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "How do we know you'll really come back?"

"I know just the thing." Hiashi added, making them all turn towards him. "I know about an old type of seal that was made when we were still trying to create the current caged bird seal. This one can be placed on the fox and if he fails to come back within twelve hours it'll kill him."

"Sounds perfect." Naruto grinned.

Hiashi had to go off into the clan archives to find out how to apply the seal and take it off if the fox succeeded. Once he did he put it to use and a seal formed over the heart of the fox. He was warned once more of what they demanded of him, and he fearfully cowered and vanished, hoping things would work out for him.

Naruto and Hinata meanwhile hugged each other for comfort, hoping their daughter would be brought back to them the way she was.


	27. Chapter 27

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, I'd be one rich SOB._

Chapter 27: Double Disasters Are About To Start

Unable to just sit around and wait, Naruto and Hinata went right up to the hokage tower and barged into Tsunade's room without any invitation or warning. She didn't look too happy as Konohamaru and his team were there getting a short mission when this happened. "Is it that hard to knock gaki? May you someday have to deal with-"

"Baa-chan, Akane-chan's been taken away." Naruto cut her off.

And it worked perfectly. Tsunade and Shizune both looked like someone just told them they were long lost sisters or something. "Alright you three, go wait in the hall for a few minutes. This here is a big priority and potential emergency."

"What's the big deal?" Konohamaru asked, looking at the older woman then Naruto. Both gave him a serious look that told him now was not the time.

Moegi grabbed his arm and pulled. "Come on Konohamaru-kun. We should get going." He didn't bother to argue and left wondering what had upset his boss so much.

Tsunade clapsed her hands together and rested her chin on them as Shizune took a seat. "Tell me what happened, and leave no detail out."

"Wait a moment." Shizune added before the two chuunin could answer. Then she raised the privacy jutsu complete with sound barrier in the office interior. "Now you can talk freely."

"Apparently while we were out some demon foxes came and took Akane-chan back to their home. Somehow a demon fox found out about her and told them about Akane and some fox council decided they want the old Kyuubi back." Naruto answered. He then remembered her telling him in Wave about coming across some unfriendly foxes and wondered if that had been what she meant.

Tsunade's frown deepened. 'Damn. And what's worse is I have no idea what to do about it. That girl's ironically one of the best things to happen for Naruto, and I really don't want anything happening to her.'

"Do you have any idea where the fox demons might live?" Hinata anxiously asked.

Tsunade sighed and shook her head. "Sorry, I don't. I only know the whereabouts of the slugs, toads, and snakes thanks to my old teammates. I haven't a clue for any foxes."

"So all we can do is wait and hope she can come back?" Naruto asked, worried and angry at the same time. His fists were trembling too, making Hinata wrap an arm around his shoulders to try and pacify him a little.

"I'm afraid that's exactly all we can do for now, Naruto. And I don't like it any more than you do, believe me." The slug sannin replied.

* * *

Akane meanwhile found herself surrounded by trees and shrubs as if she was just outside Konoha's walls. But the scent of the area told her she was nowhere near her home. The six foxes that had latched onto her let go and three ran off to the east. The remaining three stayed with her and kept a stern eye on her. She gave one of her own back and showed off her claws. "Okay, what the hell were you just thinking?"

"Nothing personal Kyuubi-sama, just-" A teal fox with three tails tried to tell her, but before he could finish two of his tails were ripped off and held in Akane's hands.

"They just don't learn do they?" Akane quietly asked herself.

The two other foxes then pounced from behind and pinned her to the ground. Akane did a substitution with a nearby large rock she saw, and took the opportunity to try and run off. She had no idea where she was or where she was going, only that she didn't want to be right there. Assuming she was being pursued, Akane created about eighty shadow clones and had them scatter, making it virtually impossible to track her easily.

While the clones were off scampering amongst the treetops and bases to throw off any trackers, the real Akane transformed into a one-tailed red fox of normal size, figuring that they would be looking for a red-haired human girl first. She stopped running and instead tried to find a hiding spot for now. She found it in the form of a den dug out underneath the base of a large redwood and there was no scent to indicate it was currently occupied. So she went inside and hoped those idiot foxes that wouldn't take 'no' for an answer wouldn't find her.

She stayed there for what could have been an hour or so without seeing a sign of anyone. Several clones had dispelled and their memories told her that more foxes had shown up and were getting rid of them one by one. So it would be a matter of time before they found her. Unless she figured out a new plan. 'Think Akane think. What would Otou-san or Okaa-san do here?'

Before she could come up with an answer, a yellow fox poked its head into her hiding place. "Aha, found you!"

Akane acted on sheer impulsive instinct right then. Just as the yellow fox pulled out its head to notify any others around it, she burst out of the den like something out of an alien movie and ran like such a creature was right behind her. She didn't get too far, as several other foxes pounced on her and pinned her to the ground, but to her credit she was a very difficult target to immobilize.

While Akane struggled to get free, she saw the three foxes she met in Wave walk up to her, making her growl. Jushiro gave a confident winners smirk that she didn't like, Gen looked indifferent, but mad at the loss of one of his tails, and Keisei almost looked apologetic. "What the hell do you three want?" Akane growled, showing off her fangs and now all nine of her tails.

"What's best of all of us, unlike you, you immature little snot who only cares about what's best for yourself." Jushiro told her.

Akane tried once more to stand up, but the weight of the extra foxes was too much for her young body. "I care about others, just not you. And so far this isn't encouraging me to care about you, senile old fleabag."

Jushiro growled and diverted his eyes for a moment. "Stupid runt." He mumbled quietly.

"Jiji-teme!" Akane growled back, having heard his put-down.

"Enough." Gen said with little patience. He then walked up to face the young kyuubi and cast a kitsune genjutsu on her, knocking her out for the time. "There. Now we can easily take her to the designated area."

"I'm still not entirely sure this is a good idea." Keisei thought aloud as they dragged the unconscious red kit away.

"It's going to happen anyway so you might as well accept it." Jushiro irritably told her.

The look of uncertainty never left the auburn vixen's face.

* * *

Back in Konoha things were not going well for Naruto or Hinata. Tsunade had told their friends who all immediately volunteered to scower the surrounding area for even the slightest hints. Even Shikamaru did so without being told to and Konohamaru's team and Hanabi's team joined in the search. The reason being was that Akane was a very charismatic character and no one really wanted to see harm come to her. Plus Naruto was the best fighter in the village and losing his daughter would surely affect him in a way they couldn't afford to have happen. Kiba and Shino were the only ones to think that something much bigger and dangerous was possibly going on here and they were right.

Sadly they found nothing, and by nightfall they had to stop. Everyone gathered around the hokage tower when they finished, and Tsunade, Shizune, and Hiashi were with them. Nobody looked happy, and Hinata looked like she wanted to cry until she dehydrated, which she was basically doing just then. Naruto held her for both of their sakes, shedding a few tears himself as they both sat down on the front steps.

"I know we'll find her eventually nee-chan. I'd bet my eyes on it." Hanabi told Hinata, hoping to get her to stop crying.

"Y'know, I gotta admit I'm surprised you two are so attached to her after only two weeks or so." Shikamaru commented. The glares he got from Naruto and Hinata made him think he quickly needed to say something good. "Maybe it's because I'm not a parent or older sibling that I don't understand. But I do think you guys are great with what you're doing with her."

"Thanks Shikamaru-san." Hinata quietly said, the tears now falling much slower.

"Out of curiousity, just why are you guys so attached to her?" Konohamaru asked. "If she was your daughter by birth I'd understand. But adopted for only two weeks? I feel like I'm missing something here."

Neither one answered right away, trying to think of the best way to phrase it to him and everyone else around them. Naruto was the first to speak up. "I care about her because I understand her and she's family now. I don't want to see her go thru what I did and even if she's not mine by blood, you can't tell me she might as well not be." No one argued that point. "She needs me, and in a way I need her too."

Hinata took Naruto's hand into her own now but didn't look up. "And I care about her because when I look at her I see the child Naruto and I would have in the future anyway. As far as I'm concerned she basically is my real daughter. I need her too now."

Nobody really knew what more needed to be said or done now. There was no need for words. But everyone was thinking essentially the same thing, that if they found the one responsible for this, there would be no mercy. Even the ones who had been victimized by the girl's pranks felt the need to help her out with Naruto and Hinata acting this way.

The moment of uncomfortable silence was interrupted by a blast of fire at one of the gates into the village. Everyone hopped to their feet, even Naruto and Hinata, and got a bad feeling about this. Especially when they thought they saw an unnatural flash of light and maybe some lightning.

Tsunade frowned. "We'll have to worry about Akane-chan later and settle this now. Everyone, you know what to do." She told them and the chuunins and jounins lept into action. The two genin teams tried to run off, but Tsunade yelled for them to stop. "I've got something else in mind for you all. Go try to inform any other jounins that might not have seen this. Now move!" They nodded and ran the other way now.

* * *

Akane woke up and saw she was tied up, still in her fox form, under some kind of dome. A large set of runes that collectively looked like an alchemic transmutation circle covered trhe floor, and she was on the edge of it. She struggled to get loose, but it didn't give as she was still slightly out of it. Torches lit the area and gave it an unfriendly appeal.

"Guess I'll make my first kill before I even become genin." Akane mumbled irritably to herself without regret considering the intended targets.

Jushiro and Gen came into her view, with eight larger foxes behind them. Three of them had eight tails, three had seven, and the last two had six. "If you're willing to cooperate with us we'll untie you now." The old tan fox told her gruffly.

"Alright then." Akane replied, trying to sound sincere but being the farthest thing from it.

None of the others moved at all. "You don't really expect us to believe that, do you?" Gen asked.

Akane shrugged. "Well, he did offer. Not my fault if you didn't expect me to be honest. And where am I?"

"We set this place up to revive our fallen ruler." One of the eight-tailed foxes told her, wanting to torment her by installing some fear in her. "Y'see, we doubt that the memories belonging to the previous Kyuubi-sama have been completely erased from your mind, just surpressed and buried deeply. With this seal and proper chakra channeling we should be able to bring those memories back to the surface."

Akane's eyes widened in shock. Jushiro grinned ferally. "And once that happens, the personality you now possess will disappear, overwhelmed by the one of the previous Kyuubi-sama. You will be just a bad dream to her."

Akane tried to look tough. "And what if it doesn't work?"

Another eight-tailed fox shrugged. "Then we'll just have to kill you and make sure your next incarceration is more submissive to us."

Now Akane was mad. "Go to hell all of you! I hope Yami turns you into a rug!" The foxes gathered around her and took ahold of her bindings in their jaws and began to drag her towards the center of the seal. She struggled but couldn't do anything effective. She did manage to bite one of their tails, earning a cry of pain. "Blech, tastes like a shag carpet. Hope Yami likes shag in hell."

After a brief glare, the dragging continued until Akane was placed right in the center of the seal. Akane kept growling and trying to break free. 'Come on Akane, you can get out of this one. Remember what Otou-san taught you what to do when trapped.'

Once the nine-tailed fox kit was in the center, the eight new foxes formed an octogan on the edge of the seal while Jushiro and Gen just stood to the side. The eight foxes looked like they made a set of hand signs with fox paws and their chakra auras flared around them. Once they were ready, they placed their paws on the seal, making it begin to glow.

* * *

Everyone in the Konoha 11 arrived at the scene where the fire erupted from. There they saw people running away or lying on the ground twitching, all looking burned. Most were civilians, but a few were jounin and chuunin. One of the identifiable ones was Genma and he was trying to fight against some girl wearing a striped outfit. A flash of light burst out from nowhere, causing him to shield his eyes, and the girl used a lightning jutsu on him, which made contact with his trademark needle and electrocuted him. An Anbu woman with a cat mask rushed to his side and managed to get some distance between him and the silver-haired girl before a follow-up strike could happen.

The group was about to join in and help out, but the call of a phoenix flower jutsu stopped them in their tracks. Atop the remains of a broken chunk of the wall surrounding the village, was Sasuke Uchiha in all his undeserved glory. He didn't look happy even if his malicious smirk on his face, and everyone could see the scars he acquired from fighting Akane in Wave. He almost looked like a young Danzo.

Rather than say anything, the brooding Uchiha just took off away from the village at full speed, heading towards the Valley of the End. Naruto and Hinata glared, Sakura looked worried, Sai looked like he always did when not smiling, and everyone else looked really irritated. "Any ideas what we should do?" Kiba asked, torn between defending the town and catching the traitor.

"Yeah. Me, Sakura, and Sai are going to go get our old teammate back and make him pay. You guys should take care of the walking storm over there." Naruto told them all, sounding like the hokage he deserved to be.

"Hold on Naruto-san, my team should go with you." Neji told him. "I understand your team's need to handle this issue yourselves, but you also need some impartial help too. Plus the Uchiha is unfamiliar with most of our techniques which will give you an advantage."

Naruto nodded. "Alright then. Now let's get going." He gave Hinata a soft look that promised a lot and she nodded before he left with Sakura, Sai, Neji, Tenten, and Lee. Teams Eight and Ten went up against the one who was still fighting the other jounin and Anbu.


	28. Chapter 28

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Tenten would know some lightning jutsus to combine with her weapons._

_I have recently put a picture of Akane's normal form on deviantART. Go to my profile for a link to it if you want to see._

Chapter 28: The Battles Have Begun

When it looked like the seal was about to work, a puff of smoke appeared where Akane had been. When it cleared, one of the eight foxes using the seal was in her place. The other seven stopped what they were doing and four of them went over to check up on him. The other three turned to look where that fox had been, and saw a red fox trying to get out of it's bindings fiercely.

"Impressive that you did a substitution just then, but it's not going to work a second time, kit." A bronze seven-tailed fox told her, walking up to her casually. Akane growled and looked like she was about to get a paw loose. The bronze fox retaliated by hitting her hard just below the neck, making her pass out.

So the three foxes grabbed onto the unconscious Akane and dragged her back to the center. The one fox that she had done the substitution with was okay, although he probably shouldn't operate any heavy machinery for a few days, and so all eight foxes took their positions again around the seal. Akane looked like she was beginning to be come conscious again, so they all hurried to continue what they had been doing.

The next thing Akane saw was the ground below her start to glow then her vision fade into whiteness.

* * *

Team Eight and Ten stood on both sides of Dansue, the electric ROOT reject. Both teams simply surrounded her, trying to keep their guards up and wait for a sign to move. Dansue kept her arms crossed and her eyes darted back towards Ichi who was hiding in a tree behind her. Both sides looked like they were waiting for the other to make the first move just then. Shikamaru crouched down slowly and got his Shadow Possession Jutsu ready to ensnare her. But Dansue saw this coming and hopped away from it, sending a small bolt of lightning towards him without making any hand signs first.

Shikamaru wasn't fast enough in his current position to dodge her, so he got hit by the blast. But luckily for him it was actually a rather weak attack, almost like static electricity that lasted for ten seconds and affected the whole body. 'How did she do that? And something tells me that's not her best attempt. This could be really troublesome.'

Shino tried using his insects on her as she dodged Shikamaru's trick. The beetles made contact but they seemed to get shocked on contact. Those that did fell off her while the rest just swarmed safely around Shino's body. Dansue saw the many bugs around her feet and started stepping on all of them. Shino looked mad now, even with his face mostly hidden.

Two light flares were thrown towards them from behind Dansue. These ones weren't too bright to look at so they inadvertently drew everyones attention briefly. While they looked they all felt their ankles suddenly come together as if tied up. They looked down and saw their feet were indeed tied together, but by shadows instead of rope. And these shadows had a tight hold, as if a Nara had done this.

Dansue snickered and flexed her hands. "Looks like you're not going anywhere now. Too bad." Small sets of sparks started to flicker around her skin, as if she was building up some kind of electric technique.

Shikamaru was still crouched down and forward so no one paid much attention to what he was doing. Because of the Nara family techniques, using shadows against him was possibly the stupidest defense there was. One might as well try to bind Chouji or Naruto with ramen noodles. So it was a synch for the shirker to use his own chakra to move the confining shadows off his feet. But rather than extend his shadow to ensnare the electric girl right away, he used his shadow to free his teammates first. He figured it would be wiser for them to be unbound if this girl tried to counter his shadow again.

When Dansue seemed satisfied with the amount of sparks around her, she started a series of hands signs. But before she could call out a name, Chouji shouted one out. "Partial Expansion Jutsu: Both Arms." His arms grew in length and size and surrounded her closely, as if caging her. Luckily for him all his extra fat and muscle along with tougher-than-normal skin gave him a much greater tolerance than most people for handling direct voltage. If she attacked now it wouldn't do much good. Shikamaru also took the chance to use his shadow to free the Team Eight members.

Lots of paper bombs wrapped around twigs were thrown at Chouji and detonated on contact. This made him withdraw his hands and return them to normal size. Shikamaru had already managed to unbind Hinata, the closest of Team Eight, and was working his way towards Shino, who looked towards the trees. "She's got an accomplace hidden in the foliage."

Dansue glared at the bug user, her body starting to spark up again. "Don't you even think about it, bug-boy."

Kiba however tried jumping into the trees to deal with the back-up, momentarily forgetting that his feet were still bound together. Fortunately that didn't affect his jump or landing too much. Once he got perched on a branch a large flash of light like a firework went off in his face, blinding him and making him tumble out of the tree backwards. Some ruffling could be heard in the leaves, implying that whoever had been there had just left.

"Now you've made me mad." Dansue warned them, reaching for the metal band around her neck. She grasped both sides of it and began to pull. After a small struggle, it came apart as if it had been clasped together, and everyone felt her chakra level increase. She then started working on the bands around her wrists and ankles while Shikamaru struggled to free Kiba's feet.

"You guys, go handle whatever help she has hidden away. We'll take care of her." The Nara heir told Team Eight, who nodded and lept out of view. He knew that the tracker team would have an easier time dealing with an unknown threat while his team could incapacitate the one right in front of them.

Ino was busy preparing her Mind Transfer Jutsu since Dansue wasn't moving around so much. Once she fired it, everyone was so sure she made contact, but there was a small surge of static between the two girls and Ino was pushed back as if hit with a strong gust of wind. 'What the hell? Did she somehow deflect my technique?'

Dansue didn't notice nor care, just felt herself surge with latent power. Because of the bands she had to wear at all times, she could absorb and release only a small amount of electric at a time. But they had no effect on all the electricity already stored in her body, and now that they were off, she could use every last bit of it as she chose. The sudden release of it was so overwhelming she was glowing like a nightlight. And best of all, she was much faster now and it wouldn't take her so long to prepare for her lightning jutsus properly.

Team Ten tried to get a little more distance between them and Dansue, who was beginning to look like a living generator. Small bolts of lightning danced all around her skin making the air crinkle around her. She gave them a hollow look. "Nothing personal, just don't want you interfering with what I've got planned." She made six hand signs rapidly. "Lightning style: Dancestorm Jutsu."

Dansue spread her arms out and it was like she had created a lightning storm around her body. It whipped out seemingly aimlessly and each bolt was large enough to look like natural lightning. Trees that were hit caught on fire or collapsed, sometimes both, and Team Ten were sitting ducks. Dansue started dancing around in the center of the electric storm looking like someone at a nightclub and having a good time.

This whole situation was working against Team Ten. With all the light from the bolts and the ground being struck too, Shikamaru's shadow techniques could never touch her. With her swift movements, Ino's possession technique was guaranteed to miss. And with the trees about to fall on them, Chouji had a hard time focusing on expanding enough to do anything. And besides, he might have a higher tolerance for voltage than his teammates, but he wasn't immune to it.

Dansue slowed down enough for a second set of hand signs. "Background Noise Jutsu." All of a sudden dancing music could be heard coming from nowhere. Ino would have enjoyed it if she hadn't been in the midst of battle. Dansue then got right back to dancing around surrounded by lightning, looking like she was really enjoying herself.

When it looked like no more trees were going to fall, Chouji used his Expansion Jutsu and positioned himself between his teammates and the ROOT reject. He tried to catch her in his large hands, but she vanished as if by shushin and reappeared where he wasn't reaching. He tried to grab her again, but she did a quick escape again, looking like she was playing with him. This kept repeating and she worked it into her dance steps.

Behind Chouji, Ino watched him struggle and Shikamaru watched while in his planning pose, eyes open this time. Ino knew not to bother him for now, wondering what she could do in the meantime. She only had one idea, which was to try and use the Mind Destruction Jutsu once Dansue dodged Chouji's arms again and landed in Ino's line-of-sight. When the opportunity came, the Yamanaka girl tried, but the electric girl just did not stay in place long enough for it to work.

Shikamaru looked like he had come up with something and stood up. "Ino, throw as many shuriken as possible over on Chouji's right side at the ground. Make sure they impact and leave some points exposed." He told her as he pulled out some wire and kunais.

"What good would that... oh, I see." Ino replied before reaching into her pouch.

Chouji was getting frustrated and was beginning to think he should just hit the girl like a fly. Now she was just dodging, using her lightning as a shield to make sure no one got to close to her and when he tried to grab her he couldn't actually grip her. So he had to settle for keeping her bust until either her batteries ran out or Shikamaru came up with a counter strategy. It was proving very troublesome to wait for either to happen.

When Dansue did a stylish back-jump and tried to shock Chouji's nose, she actually stumbled for once after she landed. She tried to keep moving around but soon fell on her back clutching her feet aching in sharp pain. When she looked at them she saw bloody cuts and a shuriken sticking out of the bottom of her left shoe. A few more sharp aches in her backside told her there were more shuriken around her.

Chouji returned to his normal size to converse his chakra and Shikamaru threw some wires with kunais dangling from them. The wires took root in the trees that had stayed upright, forming a triangle above the electric girl. "This should take care of her if she tries anything. Ino, why don't you make her a little more cooperative."

Ino nodded, and readied her Mind Transfer Jutsu. Dansue glared and pointed at her, lightning shooting off her hand. But instead of going to the pony-tailed girl, it curved up towards the kunais and was harmlessly absorbed. She gasped, dumbfounded, and Ino finished her jutsu, making direct contact this time without the resistance Dansue previously had.

Ino's body slumped and Chouji caught it. Dansue painfully stood up. "Mind transfer complete. Can one of you take these things out now?" She indicated the shurikens.

Shikamaru got started on that task, making Ino as Dansue wince each time one was pulled out. "Care to tell me what you just did, Shikamaru?" Chouji asked.

Shikamaru sighed. "Well, when she did that dancestorm thing, I noticed she was dancing around in the lightning. I wondered what the point of that was since it was clearly not to avoid getting struck by any bolts herself. Then when she added dance music into it, she naturally started to move more rhythmically, probably to kept her coordinated and going. That's when I discovered that the lightning wasn't being fired off aimlessly; she was aiming it all along."

"How'd she do that? Lightning is really hard to control like that." Chouji asked as they started walking back into the city to get the girl into custody.

"It is difficult to control, but not impossible to aim." Shikamaru continued. "The lightning went in the direction her hands and toes were pointing each time she moved around, which must be why she had to dance. But dancers naturally want to move in a rhythm, so I had Ino set up a trap for when she naturally moved back into that one area."

"And the kunai and wires were put in place as lightning rods if she attacked again?" Chouji asked, and Shikamaru nodded. "Clever, but why not do that in the first place?"

"Because all that electricity was everywhere, and if I tried setting it up while she was actively mobile, I'd have been fried."

"I'm just glad she's down for now." Ino in Dansue's body added. "Hope the others can handle the rest."

* * *

Naruto, Sakura, Sai, Neji, Tenten, and Lee raced after Sasuke thru the forest. The Uchiha was too far ahead to be seen without Neji's byakugan so he kept it active. He noticed numerous traps which they all avoided. Apparently Sasuke had intended for him to have pursuers.

"Any idea what he's planning?" Tenten asked.

"I think he's trying to lead us somewhere." Lee answered.

"The Valley of the End, where he and I fought when he left." Naruto told them. "It must be some kind of personal thing for him."

"With all of us fighting him, he's sure to go down this time." Sakura said without malice or excitement.

"Something's coming behind us quickly." Neji alerted them. "Snakes. Big ones, and a whole lot of them."

"Playing with a pedophiles toys, huh?" Naruto commented sarcastically. "And people said I was the idiot in the class."

"We'll handle them. You guys go on ahead and we'll catch up." Neji suggested, sure they didn't need his doujutsu if the destination was already known.

Naruto and Sakura nodded while Sai gave his creepy smile before heading off. Team Nine turned and got ready to fight against some really big serpents.

* * *

"Huh? Where am I?" Akane said as her vision returned. She saw she was in her human/kyuubi hybrid form, standing in knee-high water in some kind of cellar. Then she saw some gigantic iron bars in front of her but no lock, making it hard for her to tell if she was inside a cell or outside it. On the other side of the bars, she saw a single large red slitted eye open and look at her.


	29. Chapter 29

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Danzo's right arm would not be how it was in Ch. 476. I don't know what I'd do differently but I definitely wouldn't have done what Kishimoto did._

Chapter 29: Child Of Shadows Against Tracker Shinobi

While Team Ten took Dansue into custody, Team Eight was trying to apprehend her hidden back-up. Smoke bombs kept firing in the branches in a set manner showing this getaway had been set up before they started. Kiba was thinking about what tricks this guy might have up his sleeves and Hinata's mind was preoccupied with worry for Akane. Shino meanwhile focused on the situation and didn't like the look of all this.

'Hmm... if whoever is doing this went to the trouble to lay traps behind them preemptively, then they must have known they would be forced to leave the village. And that girl back there in the striped dress didn't look to me like she was trying to accomplish anything other than incapacitate whoever tried to fight her. And if Sasuke Uchiha is trying to lead the others away, he must be planning something away from any possible backup Konoha can offer. Something just doesn't feel right about all this.'

Not one of the tracker ninjas had seen their target yet but could hear his position. Hinata just now thought about activating her byakugan, and saw that her team was tailing a bird with some thin strip of cloth tied on both leg. And apparently some sets of rattling sticks were tied together with a long wire that made one make noise after another in a domino style, creating the illusion that someone was running in the trees. Thus effectively tricking their ears along with Kiba's and Akamaru's noses. Scanning with her eyes, she saw the only other person in the area was a small boy who was hiding on the ground and giving nasty looks in Team Ten's direction, not that far from them.

"Turn around. We're after the wrong target." Hinata told her teammates as she stopped and pivoted. Soon they followed.

If Ichinoshikyo was going to do anything to those that captured Dansue, he didn't get the chance to before Team Eight showed up in front of him. A basic stand-off happened between them at that moment. All of the Konoha ninja didn't bother getting into defensive positions, since he was just a child close to Akane's age. Shino however was wary and kept his insects on his skin just in case. Hinata was about to deactivate her byakugan when it caught several weapons and tools hidden in the underside of his jacket and pants pockets, so she kept it up and her arms ready to block. Akamaru and Kiba just growled and tried to look tough, hoping to scare him off so they wouldn't have to fight a child.

Ichi meanwhile barely moved a muscle. His eyeglasses fell into place, making him look somewhat like Shino in a way. He was hunched over like Shikamaru or maybe he was going to pounce, but his left shoulder pointed towards them so he didn't look like he was going to attack. His left hand disappeared into his sleeve while his right hand twirled some hair above his ear. His eyes never left the ninjas in front of him as he tried to figure out how to get rid of them then rescue Dansue.

Ichi decided to go with his best getaway idea and his left hand reappeared with a flare. He lit it, turning his gaze away somewhat to avoid looking at it, and threw it above them all. Each of the tracker ninja involuntarily looked up, but Hinata's eyes allowed her to keep looking at Ichi too. She saw him go thru three hand signs quickly and mumble something. Reading his lips, she thought he said 'Twilight Style: Blindfold Jutsu.' Before she could say anything, she felt a slight chill speed up her body and then her vision darkened a little. She could still see, but now it was darker, which wasn't so good since it was already the beginning of night.

Keeping her kekkei genkai active, Hinata took a look at her teammates. She saw that Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino all had what looked like pitch black raccoon masks around their covered eyes, like Gaara's jinchuuriki markings but much thicker and connected to one another. Akamaru whined while he and Kiba both pawed at their faces, trying to get this obstruction off. Shino was trying to do the same, but in a more calm humane manner. Hinata figured she must have something on her eyes too, but her x-ray eyes allowed her to see thru it.

Ichi however didn't realize that and decided to quietly tiptoe towards Team Ten so these ninja wouldn't hear him leave. Once he started, before he even got three steps away, Hinata got in front of him. "And just where do you think you're going?"

Ichi was shocked. 'How did she...? Maybe that was too predictable, or maybe I did make noise. Better slow them more.' Since they had already been exposed to his ankle-binding technique, he figured something they hadn't seen was the best way to go. He pulled out a glow stick, lit it, and threw it above the center of them all. Then he made some more hand signs and called out the jutsu name quietly. "Twilight Style: Dark Kraken Jutsu."

The shadows underneath the Konoha nin darkened considerably and grew thin arms. These arms shot up and latched onto random body parts and then tightened. It was a lot like the Nara Shadow Strangle technique, only this time the shadows seemed three-dimensional. With this new inconvenience added in with their forced blindness, Ichi figured they probably weren't going to be trying to get him anymore. But the young boy threw some rocks into the bushes behind him to distract their ears if they were listening for him.

Hinata looked at this new jutsu and tried to figure out how to cope with it since Shikamaru wasn't around to dispel it for them. Her eyes showed her that a dark shadow had sort of parasited itself onto the base of her right foot, with her left foot being free due to the fact it wasn't on the ground for the split second Ichi cast the jutsu. From that shadow it stretched upwards with tendrils that hooked onto her leg, torso, arms, and neck in random spots, and they were inflexible making it hard to move comfortably. The same thing was true for the others with her, except both men had both feet bound by the same dark shadow, unlike her. Akamaru had three legs tied up with one paw free and was struggling to get lose. While he did that, by rolling on the ground like he was trying to scratch an itch, Hinata noticed a flaw in the jutsu.

'I see. This kid so far has been using our shadows created by those lights to incapacitate us. He must have blinded us first by moving the shadows in front of our eyes, making it so no light could enter them, except for mine. And now he's using more shadows to try and anchor us here, or so he wants us to believe. Akamaru can still squirm and roll around, meaning we can too. The shadows are rooted to us but not the ground, so we can still walk. But it looks like Kiba-kun and Shino-kun haven't noticed that yet.'

Ichi slowly tried to walk away silently, but was blocked by Hinata hitting the ground in front of him with her fists. Ichi was perceptive enough to see that wasn't a lucky guess or even an accidental miss. She knew where he was, and had missed him deliberately. Now he was nervous, for he had no taijutsu skills at his age, only ninjutsu. Barking from behind him told him that the dog and his owner had been alerted to his whereabouts too. And a buzzing sound from the guy in the overcoat told the same thing.

All of Shino's bugs formed a ring around Ichi, limiting his mobility like he had theirs. A female scent beetle had already found its way onto the back of his head in case he tried something that happened to disable the bugs tracking skills. It was very unlikely, since insect eyes and central nervous systems were different from mammals and harder to trick. Also, because they were smaller and in great numbers, it would have been impossible for Ichi to move their shadows to blind or bind them. Plus their buzzing sound was one Kiba and Akamaru would recognize and locate effortlessly.

Ichi saw he basically backed into a proverbial corner. Two of his targets could track by scent and sound so he couldn't lose them. They were tied up at the moment, but their allie had tools that he couldn't deceive. And judging by the Aburame's sunglasses, he was used to dealing with dim-light vision on the job. And worst of all for him was the girl who apparently could see thru his shadow blindfold jutsu, meaning he had no hope of blinding her. In all his past ninjutsu training and planning, Ichi never thought he would encounter a threat that wasn't dependent, or at least strongly reliant, on sight or light to do their job. So now, he was just a frightened child with no tricks up his sleeves anymore.

He crouched down into a ball and closed his eyes. "I give. Don't hurt. Just let me be with Ane-ue." He made the hand sign for a genjutsu release, and all the troublesome shadows he had created faded away. Team Eight could move around and see again.

"That was easier than I thought it would be." Kiba commented as he scratched behind Akamaru's ear to calm the dog down.

"Well, he is just a kid. My guess is that he just acts as back-up to that other girl while she does the hard stuff." Hinata thought aloud.

"Let's take him into custody then. Hokage-sama should know what to do." Shino suggested.

"Want Ane-ue." Ichi quietly muttered, sounding afraid.

Akamaru approached the boy and began nudging him forward, with Shino's bugs still flying nearby. The boy slowly stood up and began walking, looking like he was about to be executed. So Team Eight quietly led him to Tsunade, intending to keep him away from Dansue for now so the two didn't try something together.

Hinata wanted to go join up with Naruto right then rather than stand around and wait. Just before she was about to do just that, a small thought crossed her mind. 'What if that green fox returns with Akane-chan soon? Naruto would want me here for that.' That was all the motivation she needed to remain here, even if it required waiting still.

* * *

After a long chase, Team Seven finally reached the Valley of the End, where Sasuke stood arrogantly, waiting for them to arrive. Naruto was struck with a strong sense of deja vu, but now wasn't the time to reminisce. Sakura and Sai hoped that they wouldn't have to resort to a battle here, but intellectually-speaking they knew that was a pipe dream. Would Sasuke have led them here just to chat? Kakashi was more likely to arrive somewhere on time.

No pleas for a peaceful surrender were made, no comments or threats were voiced, no questions were asked. A battle between Sasuke and his old teammates, plus a new person, simply began, with the Uchiha targetting primarily Naruto. And it was going to be a big one.

* * *

Dansue and Ichi were given to Konoha's best interrogators to find out why all this happened in the first place. Anbu reports told Tsunade that no other points along the village border were affected and that those that had already faced the duo were merely in need in intensive care, but not dead. Team Eight and Ten were the best off so far, and requested to be allowed to go be back-up for Naruto's group. Tsunade denied this, telling them that they had little hope of catching up in time to be of any use.

So the nine ninja left the building, not knowing where to go from here. While they just stood there, Hinata saw Hiashi walk up towards them, carrying something on his back. A brief glimpse of red made the heiress make a small gasp and then stop breathing for a moment. "Hey Hinata, got something for you." Her father told her, catching everyone's attention.

Akane's head popped up from behind Hiashi's back, and smiled brightly. "Okaa-san!" She shouted as she jumped right off her adopted grandfather's back. Hinata opened her arms and caught her daughter, pulling her into a fierce hug.

"Akane-chan! Are you alright? They didn't hurt you, did they?" Hinata tearily asked.

Akane groaned. "Okaa-san, you're crushing me."

"Sorry." Hinata said before loosening her grip, but not relinquishing it. Akane took two deep breaths. "What happened? How'd you get back? Are you okay?"

"It's a long story." Akane told her before noticing the others watching happily and eagerly. "Can I tell you in private?"

Hinata nodded and immediately left, leaving some confused shinobi behind. "Why didn't she want us to hear?" Ino asked.

"You'll understand when you have kids someday." Hiashi told her.


	30. Chapter 30

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, well, I can't think of anything I'd do differently this time. Maybe next update._

Chapter 30: New Kyuubi, Meet Old Kyuubi

Hinata took Akane onto the roof of a building far away enough that nobody back at the tower could hear either of them, yet close enough that if something came up she could return quickly. She sat down, still holding Akane close to her and not interested in letting go anytime soon. The last time Hinata had felt this relieved and overjoyed was when Naruto returned from facing Pain solo.

Akane pushed away from Hinata's chest so she could look at her face. Hinata looked happy yet she had tears running down her cheeks, which confused the young girl. "Okaa-san, are you okay? You're not hurt are you?"

Hinata wiped a few tears away before she answered. "I'm fine, just so happy you're back. I was so worried about you."

Akane tilted her head. "Then why were you crying?"

"Not all tears mean someone's sad, Akane-chan. Those were tears of joy."

Akane blinked. "You crying... because you were happy?" The idea sounded weird to her.

"Now tell me everything that happened when you were taken away. Everything." Hinata told her, praying that Akane was the same as she had been before this whole thing started. So far so good.

"Well..." Akane started, not sure exactly how to best phrase everything. Then she noticed something important. "Wait. Where's Otou-san?"

"He's busy taking care of a bad problem. Now tell me what happened to you."

"Well, I was with Jii-san showing him those moves I learned from you when some geezers came up and said they wanted ta mess with my memories and I said I'll hurt 'em if they tried. Jii-san told them to scram and they did, and boy did they look mad. After that, a bunch of foxes came from outta nowhere and... I think they teleported me to someplace. They and a bunch of retarded old foxes said they planned on bringing the old kyuubi back." Akane explained as best an eight year-old could.

Hinata gasped and her hold on her adopted daughter involuntarily tightened. Akane saw the fear in her mother's eyes and rushed to pacify her. "I'm fine Okaa-san. As good as ever. They tried but something went wrong with their plans."

Hinata gulped. "What something?"

Akane twiddled her fingers for a second. "It's... kinda hard to explain."

--Flashback--

"Huh? Where am I?" Akane said as her vision returned. She saw she was in her human/kyuubi hybrid form, standing in knee-high water in some kind of cellar. Then she saw some gigantic iron bars in front of her but no lock, making it hard for her to tell if she was inside a cell or outside it. On the other side of the bars, she saw a single large red slitted eye open and look at her.

Akane got frightened and stepped back, crossing her arms in front of her. If Neji had been there he might have thought she was acting just like Hinata in the chuunin preliminaries years ago. Whatever that eye belonged to, Akane didn't think she had the strength to fight it. The nerve, maybe, but not the strength.

For a moment, the eye did nothing. Then it slowly blinked and the sound of deep breathing could be heard, as if some giant had been holding its breath until now. "What the...? Who are you?" The voice was deep and gruff, but unmenacing.

Akane tried to steady herself. "You tell me first."

Two eyes became visible, and when the giant spoke the mouth and sharp teeth could be seen as well. "Well, doesn't this looks familiar, except for you. My container is supposed to be a blonde idiot, not some hanyou girl."

Akane looked irritated, and now her arms were at her sides, fist clenched. "Otou-san is not an idiot!"

The large eyes blinked rapidly. "Wait a minute. Are you saying you consider the Uzumaki boy your superior?"

"Of course. He's my alpha." Akane told the other being here. Now the eyes got closer to the bars, enough out of the dark that Akane could see who they belonged to. What she saw was a humongous red fox. She gasped as she concluded what it was, and claws tried to reach her thru the bars, unable to touch her however. "It... it can't be! You're supposed to be dead!"

"Me? Dead? Whatever gave you that idea, hanyou?"

"First off, I'm not a hanyou. I'm the newest Kyuubi no kitsune, the strongest demon alive, or as I demand to be called, Akane Uzumaki. And you're supposed to be dead, old Kyuubi." The red-haired girl told the large fox.

"What the hell are you babbling about?" Kyuubi (the old one) irritably growled.

"Did you not hear me? I said you're supposed to be dead." Akane was starting to sound a little hostile now.

"Oooookaaaaaaaay... apparently something happened after I blacked out. Now please tell me what's going on here. I don't like being confused." Kyuubi said after a brief pause.

Akane sighed. "Well, since you don't seem to realize anything, might as well fill in the gaps. According to those stupid Council of Eight foxes, you died and some phoenix-thing happened, and I was born in your place. I'm the current kyuubi.

"You mean phoenixification?" Kyuubi asked, sounding slightly worried now.

"Yeah, that's the word they used." Akane said before her frown deepened. "And now they want to undo it, kill me, and bring you back. But I'm not giving up to you ever."

"Undo it? You must be confused kit, phoenixification is a one-way road; it can never be reversed."

"Then why am I talking to you?" Akane irritably asked.

"Hold on a moment." Kyuubi told her before backing away into the darkness of the cage again. After twenty seconds, a tall woman stepped into the light. She had long red hair that reached down to her waist, where nine red tails emerged. Red fox ears came out of her scalp and her eyes were red slits. She wore a light red kimono with dark red flower print on it and a dark red sash holding it closed. Her figure looked well-developed, reminding Akane of Hinata and Tsunade. Overall, except for the eyes, Akane couldn't help but think that she was looking at an older version of herself.

"So this is your human form?" Akane asked, sizing her up out of curiosity.

"Yeah, and if what you said is true, it will be yours too when you're older. You even look a lot like what I did when I was born after the kyuubi before me died." This humanized kyuubi told the younger one.

"I wish I could say I'm sorry you're dead, but I'm not." Akane replied harshly. "Because of you, many people were killed and others suffered. Especially Otou-san."

"Kit, if you're referring to the Konoha attack, it wasn't my choice. A man named Madara Uchiha forced me to do it."

Akane smirked. "You throw a fit when I call Otou-san my alpha, and yet you listened to another human as your own? Hippo-crate."

Now Kyuubi looked madder than hell. "That lousy bastard is not, nor has he ever been, my alpha. I would never consider a human my superior, especially him or that orange-loving fool. And the word you're thinking of is 'hypocrite'."

"Then why did you do what he wanted you to do? If you're so tough, Kyuubi-teme, you should have been able to say 'no'." Akane countered, unfazed, with her arms folded behind her back now.

Kyuubi took a moment to steady herself, for she had something specific to say why she had this opportunity. "Madara Uchiha is no ordinary man. His sharingan lets him control bijuus and he has an unnatural form of immortality."

"An immortal evil-eye guy who can control demons? Oh c-word." Akane interrupted, shocked and panicked.

"I feel the same way kit. Anyway, he used his sharingan to force me to attack that village. I didn't want to, but only because I saw no reason. They never did anything to me and they weren't sufficient prey. I left them alone for the same reason humans don't go hunting for ants. But Madara had other ideas, and I think he still does."

Akane arched an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Kit, if you're really my successor, then you're in a lot of trouble. From what I've heard, Madara is trying to capture all the bijuu and their hosts for some kind of plan. He's going to go after you and the Uzumaki boy any day now."

Akane gasped. "How can I stop him?"

"I wish I could be the one to do it, but because of this whole phoenixification thing, you're going to have to do it for me." Kyuubi sighed.

Akane blinked. "So... you're not going to try and kill me and take my body as your own?"

"Can't happen kit. Like I said, the process is irreversible. What those foxes did must have used a jutsu that allows the current incarceration to talk with the previous one for a bit. As soon as we're done here, I'll be gone again. I'm surprised we have to do it in a place like this though; you must have gained some traits from Uzumaki when it happened."

Akane shrugged. "I already know that. Now tell me how to get rid of Evil-eye-jiji."

Kyuubi actually chuckled a bit at hearing that. "Okay, now here are two things you need to know about Madara Uchiha..."

--End Flashback--

Akane was about to tell Hinata more, but Tsunade came right up to them and pulled the girl into a bear hug like Hinata had done. Hinata figured that someone from their group must have gone back inside the tower to tell the hokage her granddaughter was back safe and sound. So Hinata sat back at let the older woman show her relief.

But once she saw some little arms flailing, Hinata spoke up. "Hokage-sama, you might wanna loosen your grip a bit."

Tsunade realized what she was doing and let go. Akane gasped for air like she had been drowning. "Are you trying to kill me Baa-chan? I coulda suffocated in your chest!"

Tsunade smiled and held her gently this time. "Hey, just so you know, there are plenty of people who would love to experience my 'Hug of Pleasant Death'." _(I heard this from thymistacles and liked it. I strongly recommend reading his Narutofics.)_

"Well I'd rather not die." Akane remarked with a few wheezes.

Tsunade ruffled the girl's hair and let her go. "Glad you're back kid. You had us all worried there for a moment. How'd you get back anyway?"

"Yeah, you never got to that part." Hinata added, coming closer to the girl.

Akane made sure she had successfully caught her breath before answering. "Well, they tried to bring back the old kyuubi but apparently that wasn't how the jutsu was supposed to work. They musta misread it or something. When it finished, I was still me, and they were mad. But nowhere near as mad as I was. So I tore off all of their tails. Wish I could've brought them back and made a fur coat for you Okaa-san. When I finished, some new green fox showed up and told me he was going to bring me back here. I didn't believe him until he told me about Okaa-san and Otou-san so I gave him a chance. Next thing I know, I'm back at Jii-san's place and he hugs me too."

Akane narrows her eyes at both of the older women now. "And he didn't crush me either." They just smiled at her, unfazed. "So the green fox begs Jii-san to do something about his heart, which I think he did, and then the fox just left. And Jii-san brought me here."

Tsunade turned to face Hinata. "Bet Naruto's going to be glad to see her."

"When will Otou-san be coming back?" Akane eagerly asked.

"Hopefully soon. He had to go face off against a traitor." Tsunade told the girl.

Akane looked appaulled. "Not... the one we saw in Wave, did he?"

Hinata slowly nodded. "Yeah, but Naruto's more than good enough to defeat him and he's not alone."

Akane bolted up. "That guy's not alone either. He's with some guy that can't be killed and both might hurt Otou-san."

Tsunade paled. 'Dammit, how could I have forgotten that the Uchiha was in the company of Madara? Akane-chan's right, Sasuke must be leading him right to Akatsuki's clutches, and neither realize he doesn't contain the demon anymore.'

Akane jumped off the roof and ran towards the broken wall she could see from there. Hinata and Tsunade headed after her, and were surprised to see she could stay ahead of them. "Akane-chan! Don't go, you can't do anything to help!" Hinata yelled.

"I have to go. I'm the only one who knows how to kill the immortal man for good." Akane yelled back.

* * *

Neji, Tenten, and Lee arrived at the Valley of the End. There was much damage and signs of battle here, but no sign of Naruto or Sasuke. Two bodies were lying on the ground by the river, covered in blood and lying in it too. They rushed to see what they could do. Neji's byakugan looked them over quickly, and he didn't like what he was. One of them had a slow heartbeat, but the other had none at all.


	31. Chapter 31

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Sasuke would be able to summon snakes like Orochimaru._

Chapter 31: When Animals And Ninjas Attack

Akane had managed to catch Naruto's scent and bolted after him like he was some sort of foxnip. She was very worried for him if he was about to have to face against Madara. Ignoring the voice of reason that said 'You're just a child you'll get hurt if you go there', Akane felt compelled to go right into the line of fire. Her justification? She now knew how to truly kill the ancient Uchiha, and planned on doing just that.

'If Evil-Eye-jiji tries to hurt Otou-san, I'll do to him what I did to those retard foxes.' Akane thought to herself as she zipped thru the forest floor outside the city, not jumping from branch to branch like shinobi would. Back when she told Hinata about how she got away, she actually edited that event so that her mother wouldn't be so bothered by what she had done.

--Flashback--

Akane's body, in her fox form, glowed for a moment and then stopped. She slumped on the ground looking like she needed a nap. The ten foxes around her, eight of which had been running the place of the old kyuubi's absence, curiously walked up towards her to see what had happened.

"Did it work?" A brown vixen with seven tails asked.

Jushiro shrugged. "According to the instructions, that should have allowed the precious identity to return to the body. And since Kyuubi-sama is much stronger willed than this uncouth kit, I'd say it's a guarantee. We probably just have to wait for it to finish inside her mind."

So they kept watch over her, expecting her to wake up as the old fox ruler. When she stayed still too long for Gen's likings, he crept closer and nudged her softly with his paw. Next thing he knew, he didn't have a paw anymore.

Akane jumped to all fours, waving her tails furiously and snarling like a rabid animal, with Gen's paw dangling from her jaws. She spat it out but looked ready to bite off more. Gen howled in pain and fell on his side, trying to stop the bleeding and the pain with help from a few others.

"What is the meaning of this?" Jushiro demanded, looking angry and confused.

"I'm not going to explain, jiji-teme. Instead I'm just going to hurt you." Akane growled and then pounced at him. Taking him completely by surprise, she managed to make a lucky hit and sink her fangs into his jugular. When she pulled away she took a few pieces of his flesh with her, giving him a very nasty fatal wound. "Yuck, I'm going to be tasting that for weeks. I need some ramen right away."

Two of the other foxes snapped out of their shock and tried to subdue Akane. But she retaliated by creating four shadow clones using her paws to make the hand signs. While they defended her, she took the opportunity to change back into her normal human form. Now she felt more confident in her fighting skills. Meanwhile, the other foxes, sans Gen, Jushiro, and one fox trying to mend Gen's wound, had surrounded her like guard dogs.

"So you like to gang up on kits and push them around, do ya?" Akane said before creating about eighty shadow clones. "Allow me to return the favor."

A swarm of clones descended on the foxes and tore into them like rabid Inuzukas. The foxes fought back and managed to destroy some of the clones, but sheer numbers overpowered them. By the time all the clones dispelled, all the foxes that had ganged up on Akane were now torn to bits.

"What is the matter with you? You didn't have to do that." A purple fox with six tails, the one that had stayed out of the fight to look over Gen, stated in shock and disgust.

Akane gave him a cold remorseless look. "If I hadn't they would have killed me. I know what this was all about. You wanted to bring the old kyuubi back and if you couldn't you'd kill me. Did you actually expect me to do nothing about that?"

The purple fox tried to look tough, but was actually terrified. Gen looked frightened too, and no one knew for sure whether Jushiro was still alive or not. Before anything could happen next, Keisei and a green fox that looked in a rush entered the room and slowly approached Akane. "Excuse me, are you the one called Akane?" The green fox hesitantly asked.

"What do you want?"

"I'm here to take you back to the humans. A man in orange and a woman with pale eyes told me to bring you back or I'd be killed soon."

"Seriously?" Akane asked, hopeful yet fearful this was some kind of trick.

"I know this fox Akane-sama and he has never lied to me before." Keisei told her.

Akane just looked plainly at the auburn vixen. "And why should I believe you? You and your friends tried to kill me just now."

"No, I did not. I felt that it was best we just leave things as they were, but Jushiro and the Council of Eight disagreed. Gen went along because he'll follow Jushiro anywhere." Keisei then looked over all the corpses but her expression didn't change. Once she saw Gen and the purple fox, she looked apologetic for some reason. "I can't say I like this, especially since we have almost no authority figures now, but if you stay it'll just keep happening over and over again. We'll take you back to the human village and hopefully be done with you until you've matured more."

"If this is a trick, I'll neuter you." Akane replied, making both new foxes sweat heavily. 'Good, they're scared now. Hope they don't call my bluff cause I still have no idea what 'neuter' really means other than it sounds bad. Better ask Kiba-ojisan when I can.'

"Let's go now." The green fox said in a panicked voice.

Next thing Akane knew, she was surrounded by smoke, and when it cleared, she was back at the Hyuuga compound.

--End flashback--

So now Akane was following Naruto's scent trail with Hinata following closely behind her. Tsunade was now catching up, and Kiba and Shino were tagging along with her. "That was quick." Hinata told the hokage, who had to stop for a moment back in Konoha to get some more reinforcements.

"Didn't take too long to find the right men for the job." Tsunade replied. "I figured that things might get ugly soon, and if Akane goes a little haywire it's best if only people who already know her secret are there to see."

"What about in regards to Team Nine?" Shino asked.

"Yeah. What if they see?" Kiba added. Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Hopefully it won't come to that. But if it does, we may have to let them in on it." Tsunade told Team Eight, not liking the idea too much. Like Naruto, she'd rather there be few people who knew the truth about Akane's origins than a lot. But if it couldn't be avoided, then they'd just have to cross that bridge when they came to it.

"Okaa-san are we there yet?" Akane asked Hinata.

* * *

Sasuke stood in front of the nine-eyed statue that currently contained eight of the bijuu, and before his feet was the unconscious body of Naruto Uzumaki. "Heh, I knew you were still pathetic dobe. And Madara actually gave you the benefit of the doubt. He must be getting senile."

Naruto's eyes snapped open and he looked mad. "No, you're just cocky, teme." Then he sprang to his feet.

"What the...? How could you...?" Sasuke tried to ask, then answered his own questions. "Ah, I see. You were just pretending to be beaten so I'd bring you here. And you knew I had to bring you alive."

"Yep. Now I can do what I should have done back in Wave." Naruto told him while pulling out a kunai and charging. Sasuke blocked with a kunai of his own and activated his sharingan.

"Really? Is that the best you can do?"

"I'm not going to show you my best moves right away teme, not while you got that evil eye working." Naruto stated. 'Wait, did I really just say evil eye? Bet Akane-chan would love to have heard that.'

Sasuke tried to punch the blonde shinobi, but he ducked and headbutted the Uchiha's gut, making him stumble backwards. Sasuke regained his footing and make four hand signs. "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu." Several fireballs came out of his mouth. Naruto created several shadow clones that took the hit. In the smoke created by such a defense, Sasuke couldn't see several clones hid themselves behind the statue and get into a meditation pose to draw natural chakra into themselves. If Naruto could by himself some time, he could go into sage mode. He knew he had to win, for his own survival and for the sake of his teammates, one of which had been killed while taking a hit meant for Naruto.

Madara meanwhile hid in a cove near the ceiling, watching over the fight like he did when Sasuke fought Danzo two years back. If things got rough he'd step in and handle it, but no need to do so now. Besides, Sasuke needed to learn a few lessons in how he saw others and he obviously was only going to learn them the hard way. So all Madara had to do was sit down, pull out a bag of popcorn, and watch the showdown.

* * *

Team Eight, Tsunade, and Akane saw Team Nine Heading their direction, and both sets of people stopped. Tenten looked to be carrying Sakura on her back and Lee appeared to be carrying Sai on his. Neither one of them looked good.

"Let me see them." Tsunade insisted, then turned to Team Eight and Akane. "You three go on ahead. Akane-chan, you stay with me."

"But I-"

"That's an order Akane, and good ninja and little girls listen to what they're told." Tsunade cut her cut sternly.

Akane slumped her shoulders and looked down, kicking some dirt. "Yes, Baa-chan."

After Hinata gave Akane a brief departing hug, Team Eight left and Tenten and Lee put their passengers down. Tsunade grimaced at the sight of them. Sakura had cuts and burn marks all over her and it looked like her right arm was broken in two places. Sai on the other hand had a fist-sized hole thru his abdomen and was cut in half at the waist. There was zero chance of him still being alive now.

When Akane happened to see this, she felt bad for the pink-haired kunoichi and stunned at seeing the emotionally-challenged ninja's injuries. Mental images of the same injury, sans the cleaving, happening to her not too long ago made her begin to hyperventilate. Tenten tried to turn her away and rub her back to calm her nerves while Tsunade tried to heal what she could regarding Sakura.

After a few minutes, Tsunade stood up and dusted off her hands. "Okay, now she's in better condition for travel. You three should take her back to the village and take Akane-chan back with you. I'll handle Sai's body and go join up with Team Eight shortly. Got it?"

"Yes Hokage-sama." Neji, Tenten, and Lee said together.

Akane seemed to have other ideas, for she did a quick substitution with a nearby fallen branch and ran off towards the Valley of the End. "Dammit, that girl is too much like her father for her own good." Tsunade mumbled. "Okay then, do everything else I told you while I handle her. Now go." Team Nine then left towards Konoha while carrying Sakura as the last living sannin tried to catch up with the last free bijuu.

After a moment of moving, Hinata, with her byakugan active, came to a stop, causing her teammates to do the same. "Something wrong Hinata?" Shino asked. He then saw the red-haired fox girl dash past them without noticing them. "Guess she chose not to listen to Hokage-sama and go help her father on her own."

"Sorry guys, but I have to go be with Naruto and Akane-chan. I need to; you'll understand when you're a parent someday." Hinata told them quietly.

Kiba nodded, understanding the 'loyalty to the pack' situation she was in. "Gotcha. We'll be alright. Make sure those two are too, especially since they don't always listen to the hokage. They should at least listen to you."

"Thanks." Hinata said before turning around and vanishing in a hurry. Kiba and Shino waited where they were for a moment before Tsunade showed up.

"Why are you guys just standing here?" She asked hastily.

"Someone needed to show you the rest of the way." Kiba told her as all three chased after Akane and Hinata.


	32. Chapter 32

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Sasuke would not be able to summon hawks like he apparently can now. And according to a reviewer, Sasuke apparently can summon snakes. My mistake._

_For those that haven't found out yet, pictures of the other OCs in this fic have now been created and posted on deviantART too. Check out my profile for the link to see them if you want. Sorry if they're not of the best quality. And sorry that I'm going to be using the dread Cliffhanger Jutsu often for the rest of this too._

Chapter 32: Uzumaki Versus Uchiha: Round Two

Naruto and his clones kept fighting against Sasuke, hoping to keep him busy long enough for him to enter sage mode. Sasuke was sure to have several tricks up his sleeve, and for the blonde this was the best of his own. He couldn't afford to pull any punches here today, but at the same time, he felt he needed to keep his unpredictable side strong too. It might be his only chance to walk away alive.

Sasuke meanwhile wasn't going to take this fight as seriously as when he killed Itachi. Sure, Naruto was tougher now than he was back when they clashed at the Valley of the End the first time. The fact that he survived a chidori thru the chest is proof enough. But the Uchiha's biased view of those around him convinced him that this was going to be a more irritating battle than a challenging one. Surely he wouldn't even need Susanoo or anything like that here.

Many clones ambushed Sasuke and tried to punch him, but his Intercepting Fist made them all disappear effortlessly. They kept coming at him and getting beaten, and soon the air was thick with the smoke from the destroyed clones, weakening Sasuke's vision. While the sharingan was a powerful doujutsu, it was still an eye and thus needed light to do its job the right way. So with his vision obscured, he started to get a disadvantage here.

Sasuke tried a small wind jutsu he had copied to clear the smoke, and when it was gone he saw even more Naruto's heading for him. But this time, each one of them had a rasengan in their hands, giving a total of twelve. Sasuke tried to quickly think of a good way to block them all without wasting his trump cards. He flashed thru some hand signs and cried out "Fire Style: Phoenix Trail Jutsu" before exhaling a long line of fire as he spun briefly. The flame formed a ring around him as he turned in place which should stop the clones from getting close to him.

However, he didn't move quick enough and two clones, holding two rasengans each made it thru to him. They rammed their chakra spheres at the traitor hoping to render him immobile if nothing else. Sasuke reflexively called out Susanoo to block them. It partially worked, for the summoned ribcage took two of the hits but cracked from it. The other two however made contact with Sasuke's flesh and tore into him. The damage was minimal due to a surge of chakra surrounding Sasuke protectively as a side effect of Susanoo, but damage was indeed done. His clothes were torn and some of his skin was shredded off. Nothing fatal though, but inconvenient nonetheless.

Sasuke used a large fireball jutsu to get rid of the rest of the clones while the rest of Susanoo slowly formed around him. It was going slower than normal, probably due to the blow Naruto had made when it was still forming, thus disrupting the jutsu. Sasuke looked around like a predator trying to find the orange-loving ninja, but couldn't. At least until said ninja came bursting thru the ground with an uppercut to the jaw. Sasuke blocked with his left arm and felt it was a serious blow. He pulled out his katana and cut him on the left side of his abs, only for this Naruto to disappear too.

"Damn his clones are irritating. Afraid to fight me yourself dobe?"

"Someone who abandons his comrades has no right to criticize what they do later." Naruto's voice could be heard responding.

"Still preaching like Kakashi loser?" Sasuke tried to locate him but he saw nothing. 'He doesn't have some kind of invisibility jutsu does he?'

"Kakashi-sensei treated you better than Sakura-chan or I. Didn't anything he taught you mean anything to you?" Now it sounded like Naruto was a little bothered or offended.

"The chidori did, even if it didn't do everything I wanted it to." Sasuke lightly smiled at that, but his eyes stayed cool and calculating. 'Keep on talking loudmouth, and give away your position.'

However, Naruto stayed silent in his hiding spot, which happened to be underneath the giant statue. The one place he figured the Akatsuki couldn't risk causing battle damage. He had clones hidden in small outcoves hidden in the higher parts of the wall, one speaking at a time so their vocal positions would keep the Uchiha guessing. So while Sasuke argued with the clones, the real one could plan out how to end this and all the while try to enter sage mode himself as his clones held extra chakra for him.

Naruto was torn between getting rid of the traitor now and being done with it all, or rendering him helpless so he could be brought back to Konoha for trial to face whatever Tsunade deemed appropriate. A large part of him wanted the latter, as he always had. Part of it was due to his old pledge, even though he wasn't bound to it anymore by Sakura, but the biggest part was that Naruto didn't want to risk offending any of the council members again. With Danzo and even Homura and Koharu no longer in power due to old age, the civilian side couldn't push themselves around like they had used to. And there weren't as many Uchiha-worshippers around as there used to be so there was little to fear from him doing anything to Sasuke. But if he brought him in alive, it might help his image in the public.

On the other hand, Sasuke had already proven to a threat to Hinata and Akane. And even worse, there was a very good possibility that Sasuke knew that Akane and the kyuubi were connected. There was no way for him to know that little girl was in fact the kyuubi reborn, but he had to suspect something after what he saw in Wave. If Sasuke wasn't taken care of effectively, he would definitely try to harm Akane and maybe Hinata too. Naruto's desire to protect them was stronger than his desire to look respectable to others. So in the end, he decided he would make sure this was Sasuke's last fight, whether or not he died today.

Naruto felt he had waited long enough and managed to enter sage mode. His blue eyes became yellow and toadish with red circling around the outer edges and he felt a surge of power, one that he knew Sasuke's sharingan couldn't copy. A few more clones that weren't drawing natural chakra ambushed Sasuke to keep him occupied after he got rid of Susanoo, and then the real Naruto charged at the Uchiha too.

Sasuke got rid of all the attacking clones and now had to deal with Naruto head-on. Using his katana to block Naruto's kunai, he noticed the blonde's physical changes. "What's with your eyes? Is this some sort of new trick from that damn fox?"

Naruto growled and looked madder. "Don't ever talk about her like that!"

Sasuke pushed Naruto back and both separated for a moment. "Her? The Kyuubi's a female?"

"Like I'm going to tell you anything." Naruto responded while creating a rasengan without a shadow clone. He had been able to do so since a few months before he turned seventeen, but liked to trick people into thinking he still had that handicap. Sasuke was surprised to see him doing this and tried to cut his arm off, but Naruto threw his rasengan right into the blade, scattering it in the process. When Sasuke looked in disbelief Naruto used his free hand to punch him right in the jaw.

Sasuke fell but was only dazed, and before he hit the ground he flipped back onto his feet. He did have to spit out some blood, proving Naruto's punch couldn't just be shrugged off. His sharingan was working overtime trying to figure out how Naruto was doing all this but he got no satisfying answers. Naruto seemed to be surrounded by extra chakra not his or that of the kyuubi's, and his sharingan saw no way to mimic how he was taking it in or molding it.

He didn't get to keep looking for long since Naruto kept trying to hit him. His unorthodox taijutsu actually seemed to be a good match up for Sasuke's own Uchiha clan style. Naruto couldn't make a hit so easy, but at the same time the same could be said for Sasuke too. It was almost as if the two were evenly matched, but Sasuke refused to consider the possibility. He had to be better, for anything else was simply unacceptable.

Naruto started to feel he was running low on natural chakra so a clone dispelled and he gained more. But he got an interesting memory with it. This clone could see the Akatsuki member Tobi, aka Madara Uchiha, sitting in another outcove like his clones were. He wasn't doing anything except watching the fight like it was the chuunin exam finals and eating some popcorn behind his mask. This guy could easily destroy all of Naruto's clones if he wanted to and give Sasuke the advantage here, but he wasn't. But if he and Sasuke were on the same side, why wasn't he trying to help him? Was he simply having more fun seeing what would happen if he did nothing?

Ignoring that thought process for now, Naruto kept his focus on the Uchiha in front of him actually trying to hurt him. Sasuke tried using some shurikens to wound Naruto who dodged them but did get scraped by one. Sasuke high-jumped backwards and landed on the wall behind him, making hand signs as he did so. When he pushed himself off the wall, his left arm was glowing and making a chirping noise. Naruto high-jumped backwards too and landed on a wall, swirling condensed chakra in his right palm but with a wind twist to it before he pushed himself forward.

"CHIDORI!"

"RASEN-SHURIKEN!"

The two former teammates clashed in the center, or so it appeared. It was hard to say for sure since a large blast of light obstructed any viewers vision. When it cleared, Naruto stood on the ground proudly yet sternly, with small cuts on him and his clothes. Sasuke however, was missing both arms just below the shoulders. Well, actually his right arm was still somewhat connected, but only by a thin strip of flesh. He felt a large amount of pain throbbing in what was left of his limbs, and once he saw why it seemed to increase tenfold, making him unable to contain a scream.

Just before Naruto clashed with Sasuke midair, he threw his rasen-shuriken to minimize the damage to himself. It tore thru the lightning blade and continued to cut up Sasuke's whole left arm, severing it completely quickly. And before they started falling, Naruto pulled out a large kunai and jabbed it into Sasuke's right arm, harder than he initially intended to and cut it almost completely off when he removed the kunai.

'Reminds me of when Jiji took away Orochimaru's arms. Like sensei like student I guess.' Naruto jokingly thought, then felt a light chill. 'Oh crap, I better not turn into Ero-Sannin then. Not that Hinata would mind that on our honeymoon I think.'

Once he could stop shouting and thrashing in pain, Sasuke tried to sit up, the lack of arms making it harder for him to do that. So he slumped back down on the floor. "How the hell could a dobe like you do this to me, an Uchiha?" He never stopped wincing the entire time.

"Simple, teme. First, you're all alone. If you won or lost today, no one would care but you. But as for me, I've got several people who care. I can't let them down so I've got a better motivator than you. Second, you're forgetting that 'Uchiha' is just a name, a word. It can't do anything for you except give people something to call you. And as for me being inferior, well, you're not the only one who got trained by a sannin. I got better over the years too."

Sasuke grimaced and closed his eyes angrily, starting to feel the loss of blood. For a brief moment, he paused to consider Naruto's words. Sasuke had always said he wanted power to avenge his clan, and he thought that was all the motivation he needed to do better than anyone else. But Naruto was fighting for the living, not the dead, so he couldn't afford to lose. Dead men can't do anything for you, whether you avenge them or not. Naruto was right, he had more reason to win here. And he was right about Sasuke's name too. 'Uchiha' was just a word, not a weapon or power-up. It meant nothing except who Sasuke's ancestors were.

What really stung Sasuke's pride the most was the fact that one of Naruto's comments sounded a lot like one of Madara's too. All this time, Sasuke had been convinced that Naruto was a failure as a ninja and always would be. But their mission to Wave wouldn't have succeeded without him, they wouldn't have escaped Orochimaru in the Forest of Death without him, and he even beat his enemy in the chuunin exam finals, which was something Sasuke couldn't claim. Naruto was anything but a complete failure. Sasuke now saw that, and saw how foolish he had been to assume that his old teammate was still the same in skill as he had been when they were on the same team.

"Come on, just kill me. Get it over with." Sasuke muttered in defeat.

Naruto paused, then shook his head. "That's for the hokage to decide, not me." Naruto then felt a rush of memories and natural chakra, and saw that all his shadow clones had been destroyed. Madara then appeared casually before him, with Sasuke's body lying between them. "What do you want?"

"Why, only the kyuubi of course. Then everything will work out for me." The older Uchiha answered.

"Over my dead body." Naruto stated fiercely, taking a step back and making sure not to look at Madara's eyes.

"That's kind of the point kid." Madara pointed out.


	33. Chapter 33

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Danzo wouldn't have the mokuton. Is it just me, or does Kishimoto seem to love everyone with a sharingan? It looks like the only normal or weak one out of them all is Kakashi._

_By the way, I noticed that in Ch. 31 at the end I got Team Eight and Team Nine mixed up, so I went back and edited it to fit better._

Chapter 33: What Happened To The Back-Up

In Konoha once everything had settled down the remaining ninjas went to stand guard near other parts of the defending walls in case of more intruders. Shikamaru was standing by the hole created by Sasuke while an Anbu used an earth jutsu to repair the damage quickly. After he and his teammates brought Dansue and Ichi to the interrogation cells they went back to stand guard. At the moment Ino and Chouji were surveyed the nearest ninja posts while Shikamaru tried to figure out something that could explain all this.

'Hmm... so far no one else on the intercom has seen anything, which most likely means that no one's trying to breach our defenses from another direction. So does that mean that only three people were in on this? What the heck were they thinking? Three people couldn't possibly do enough damage to a ninja village to make the attempt worth it. So what was their goal?'

Shikamaru sighed in frustration and sat down, getting into his regular pose. 'OK, go over the facts again. Sasuke Uchiha destroys a piece of the wall and enables others to get in. However, none do and keep a stable post in the woods surrounding town. Obviously a way to draw attention and make it easier for people to come to them. And when they did, Sasuke took off but the other two remained to fight. They must have been a safety measure to ensure that not too many people interfered. And Sasuke didn't leave until after we showed up, and he wouldn't make himself known and then leave unless he wanted to be pursued.'

At this time Ino and Chouji had come back but saw what Shikamaru was doing so they didn't disturb him. He finished whatever he was thinking over, opened his eyes, and stood up to face his teammates. "See anything?"

"Nope. Nothing." Ino answered, shaking her head.

"Ditto." Chouji added.

Shikamaru sighed. "I figured. I don't think this was an ambush or anything like that. I get the feeling this was a trap."

"What do you mean?" Chouji asked.

"Well, three people create a ruckus and wait until someone shows up. It also happens to take place at the point closest to where we and our friends were so we'd be among the first to reach it. I believe that Sasuke must have used some kind of scout, like a bird or something, to see where we were so he'd know the best place to strike."

"So you think he was after us?" Ino asked.

Shikamaru shook his head. "No. Remember, Sasuke has allied himself with the Akatsuki. Who are the Akatsuki targeting, and who went after Sasuke after he ran off?"

Ino and Chouji gasped then answered together. "Naruto!"

"Bingo." Shikamaru told them with a nod. "I believe that this was a way to draw Naruto out, and Sasuke's leading him right where he wants him. The girl we faced and her back-up, most likely just a way to ensure that not too many others followed Naruto. The Akatsuki are making their move for his bijuu now, and they wouldn't do that unless they had the other eight already."

"We gotta do something!" Chouji all but shouted.

"What can we do?" Shikamaru asked. "We'd never get to where Sasuke's leading Naruto in time to be of any use."

"We can't just sit here!" Ino did shout, making the Nara heir lean back a bit.

"I know, but unless you think we can reach them _really _quickly, there's little we can do but pray Naruto can pull a victory out of nowhere, again."

"Do you think you know where they went?" Chouji asked.

"Well, judging from the direction Sasuke took and his past behavior, I'm willing to bet my next paycheck that he's leading Naruto to the Valley of the End, where they had their last match."

Chouji smiled. "Get everyone together who's willing to go along. I think I know how we can get there quickly."

* * *

In one of the interrogation rooms, Anko and Ibiki stood firmly in front of their new captives. It was hard for them to try to look so menacing when their captives looked so meek, but years of experience allowed them to. In a way, they were relieved because if the two prisoners were like this, the two guards wouldn't have to resort to drastic measures to obtain any information.

Since the room was brightly lit, Ichi was huddled into himself like a frightened turtle, whimpering like a puppy. Dansue held him and tried to be a source of shade for him but it wasn't going anything to calm him. "Please, turn off the light. Ichi-chan doesn't like light or illuminating sources." She pleaded, only to be met with stern uncompromising faces. "Please, just dim them then. He's scared out of his wits." Again, they did nothing, and Dansue moaned. "If I tell you everything, will you at least let him set up a sheet or something so he'll feel better?"

"Everything?" Ibiki asked in a way that told her he didn't believe her. It was a tactic he used to get them to settle for giving more than they initially intended.

Dansue slowly nodded. "Everything I know. Just let him out of the light first."

Ibiki and Anko shared a look that made Dansue think they still wouldn't do anything, and then turned to her. "Fine. You may set up something for the kid, but we must watch." They figured they wouldn't get much out of the child anyway so no real lose for them.

"Thanks." Dansue quietly told them, then whispered to Ichi. "Ichi-chan, you can set up your tent now." The boy just handed her a scroll, as if afraid to move around too much. She took it and released the tent from it and began to set it up. Anko and Ibiki saw nothing suspicious in the tent or her actions. Once it was done she held the door flap open. "All set Ichi-chan."

In a mad dash, the dark-haired boy rushed into the makeshift shelter and zipped the door up. "Thanks, Ane-ue."

Dansue smiled, knowing he could relax now since the inside of the tent was coated with dark fabric to block out sunlight. Then she sat down in front of the interrogators. "Thanks. What do you want to know?"

"First, who are you and the scaredy-cat?" Anko asked.

"Well, we have no real names so to say. I'm called Dansue and he's called Ichinoshikyo, or Ichi-chan as I call him. We're rejects from Danzo-teme's ROOT program."

"Rejects?" Ibiki asked.

"Yeah. Sometimes when Danzo-teme tried to create his soulless obedient puppet ninjas, he didn't always succeed or get the results he wanted. I'm one of them, among others, and we were held up in a holding cell far from this village."

"Why would he do something like that?" Ibiki asked.

"Probably didn't want anyone to see proof of what he was doing." Anko suggested.

"No, I mean why did he allow them to live if he considered them failures? Danzo would have most likely just killed them, so why didn't he?" Ibiki asked again.

Dansue shrugged. "I think he might have intended to give us over to some guy called Orochimaru he knew. I don't know why or who that guy is, just the name. If he did he never got the chance to."

"So Danzo was in fact connected to Orochimaru?" Anko asked.

"Most likely, but I don't know anything else on that matter."

"In that case, why were you and the child trying to break into our village?" Ibiki demanded forcibly.

Dansue flinched before answering. "Well, about some time ago, all the security measures in the holding cells where we were kept gave out, and most of the ROOT rejects had a bloody battle. Those that survived escaped into the world, and I would have too, had I not found Ichi-chan who didn't want to leave. He was scared and felt safe there, so I felt I needed to watch over him. We stayed for a bit but I wanted to leave, but Ichi-chan refused to budge. Then two guys show up, one with a spiral mask and the other with duck-ass hair and a bad attitude, and make an offer. If we helped them find some guy wearing a lot of orange, they'd help us find Danzo-teme so we could kill him. I accepted, and they even managed to get Ichi-chan to go along."

Anko and Ibiki shared a look that conveyed a lot of statements they agreed on. "I'm sorry to tell you this, but Danzo was executed about two years ago. He's already dead."

"What?" Dansue shouted while leaping up. Anticipating something hostile, Anko got behind her and put her in a headlock while Ibiki drew out a syringe and made sure the silver-haired girl could see it. She calmed down. "Really? Why?"

"He tried to kill the godaime hokage and usurp the other village's control. He was ordered to death for it." Anko answered.

"So I was too late." Dansue muttered regrettably. Anko released her hold and Dansue plopped down.

"And it was thanks to that 'guy wearing a lot of orange' that it happened." The snake mistress added.

Dansue looked shocked. "Really? But... that duck-ass said he was a horrible monster. We would be doing the world a favor by getting rid of him."

Anko shook her head. "Sorry girl, but the only one you did a favor for was that traitor. Both of those guys are plotting to use him to make the world better for themselves. You were played like a fiddle."

Dansue got mad, mad enough that her body started to glow and spark. Luckily Team Ten placed those inhibitor bracelets back on her body so she couldn't do much besides glow. "Just like that son-of-a-bitch Danzo. Using others simply to inflate their ego. If I see either of them again, I'll give them a taste of real lightning."

Anko smirked, but then got serious again. "As nice as it would be to see that, I'm afraid you've done some serious damage and potentially endangered the lives of the whole world. You still need to be punished for that." Ibiki nodded in agreement.

Dansue hung her head. "Fine, Just don't separate me from my little brother. That's all I ask."

"Oh, your punishment isn't up to us. That's for the hokage to decide. And she's busy for the time being. So you're going to be held here until then." Ibiki told her, then he and Anko proceeded to leave the room and lock them inside. "Don't try anything funny."

Dansue gave them a sad look. "I've just endangered someone I should be thanking. I'm not in the mood to try anything."

Ibiki and Anko left and locked the door. Thru the window they saw the silver-haired girl curl up and look remorseful next to the tent. "I kinda feel bad for her. She thought she was doing something good until it blew up in her face." Anko commented.

"Deja vu, huh?" Ibiki asked his partner.

"Not quite, more sympathy if I had to call it anything."

Ibiki decided to change the subject. "So the Uchiha is after Uzumaki is he? If he's connected to Akatsuki like I heard, then they're finally after the Kyuubi."

"What do you think they're gonna do when they find out he doesn't have it in him anymore?" Anko asked.

"Kill him and then search for it." The scarred man plainly answered. "And I think you mean 'if' they find out. That kid could still get out of this one."

"Let's hope so. The fate of the world may rest on what that knucklehead does today." Anko told him.

'Why do I get the feeling I should make out my will?' Both interrogaters thought just then.

* * *

Team Nine had made it back to the village with Sakura, who was still unconscious. When they were taking her to the hospital, they ran into Ino. "Hey, glad I found you guys. Shika thinks Naruto's in big trouble at the Valley of the End."

"He is. We just found Sakura there unconscious and that pale boy dead. But no sign of Naruto or the Uchiha." Tenten told the Yamanaka heiress.

Ino gasped. "Oh crap. Even with Chouji's idea we might be too late then."

"What idea?" Neji asked.

"I don't know. He just said he might have a way for all of us to get there quickly."

Neji shook his head sadly. "I think it's too late already for anything we could do. The only ones who could do anything at this point are Team Eight and Hokage-sama."

Everybody there silently thought the same thing: 'Good luck, Naruto.'


	34. Chapter 34

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, the weakness I give Madara in this chapter would definitely be the one used to get rid of him later. Wouldn't it be surprising if Kishimoto did the same thing later? _

Chapter 34: Uzumaki Versus Uchiha: Round Three, With A New Uchiha

Naruto and Madara stood facing each other, neither moving but still keeping their guard up. Naruto knew he couldn't drag this out for long, as Madara had just destroyed all his shadow clones and he'd never be able to make more that could gather more natural chakra quick enough. He figured that with all the natural chakra already collected and thrust into him at once, he could probably stay in sage mode for at most twelve minutes, and that was pushing his luck. If he didn't do anything about it that is.

'Damn. If only I had a little bit of the kyuubi's chakra left in me still, I'd feel more certain about this.' Naruto thought briefly. Shortly after Akane's release, Tsunade wondered if the fox was completely released or if there was still some minor connection between the two. So she did a chakra scan over the young blonde. The diagnosis said that no red chakra remained in Naruto anymore; now he was truly running on his own power. But because of the absence of so much chakra, his coils compensated by replacing the lost amount with his own. So in essence, Naruto lost all demonic chakra and doubled his own, which was why he could still do all the jutsus he could to the degree he could. However, if he ever ran out, the lack of the secondary chakra source could be disastrous to him.

"Are you not afraid, boy?" Madara asked him, as if to goad him into quivering.

"Afraid of what?"

"Why, the fact that I'm about to kill you and use your tenant to make the world as I see fit."

Naruto smirked. "You can't, and you know it. If you could, you wouldn't be standing here talking about it; you'd just do it. The bad guy always gloats to hide the fact that it's all he really can do." Madara had no reaction. "You've sent several of your team members after me and they've all been defeated, even if not by me. You claim to be tough but you yourself don't do anything, just like Nagato. If anyone here is afraid, it's you."

"Me? Why would I be afraid, boy? I'm older and more experienced than you, plus I'm immortal. So what do I have to be afraid of?" The oldest Uchiha asked.

Sasuke meanwhile laid on the floor to the side of both of them, trying to ignore his pain. 'What are you doing dobe? You should be fighting him off, not chatting with him. Even if fighting him is futile, at least you can go out like a ninja should.'

"Well, It's just a guess I have, but I think Shikamaru himself couldn't make a better one." Naruto said, slowly reaching into his kunai holster. He knew he couldn't hide this, but hopefully draw this out a bit more. "You've got a great ability and could have gathered up all the jinchuuriki by yourself by now if you wanted to. It would have been no problem. But instead you had others do the work for you. There had to be a reason, and I figured you were either lazy, had no offensive techniques, or you were afraid of dealing with the targets directly."

Naruto then took his hand out of the holster, and it was empty. Madara saw this and wondered why he didn't grab a kunai. "Now why would I be afraid of some measly hosts?"

Naruto held in a chuckle. What Madara didn't realize was that since he kept talking about fear, he was basically admitting that was his reason for everything. "I asked myself that too. Why would someone who can't die be afraid of something? The answer's obvious: THE POWER OF A BIJUU IS THE ONLY THING THAT CAN KILL YOU, ISN'T IT?"

Madara stiffened and Sasuke's eye's widened at hearing this. Naruto's grin widened as well. "I'm right, aren't I? That's why you're after the bijuu, aren't you? It's not just so you can do that moon-eye thing Gaara told me about; you're trying to remove the only things that actually threaten you!"

Madara turned to give Sasuke a disappointed look, which had little effect behind a mask. "And you said he was the village idiot? He figured out something even you couldn't, genius. Bet you feel stupid now."

"Not even trying to deny it, huh old man?" Naruto mocked as he folded his arms behind him.

"So? Even if you figured it out, you still can't do anything to me, boy." Madara told him.

"Arrogant much? Guess it runs in the family." Naruto said as he started slowly going thru some hand signs. Sasuke could see the motion and might have said something, but now that Naruto had proved tough enough to defeat him, a part of him wanted to see if he actually stood a chance against Madara. So he kept quiet. Besides, if Madara's sharingan couldn't pick up the subtle muscle movements in Naruto's arms he deserved to get hit a few times.

But Madara was being cautious. He may put up an arrogant front, but truth was he would be on the defensive here. Naruto had defeated Pain, Shukaku, and many others deemed too tough for him to even scratch. If anyone could actually succeed in hurting the ancient Uchiha, it was him, and such a strike could prove fatal. So he decided to pull out a long sword and cut the boys arms at the shoulders. As long as the seal wasn't damaged, such an injury wouldn't interfere with him trying to extract the bijuu.

Naruto jumped away from the slow attack and finished signing. "Summoning Jutsu." When he reached into his kunai holster, it was to make the cut for blood needed or the summoning without bein obvious about it. Two puffs of smoke appeared in the air behind him, and they cleared to reveal Ma and Pa Toad. "No time to chitchat. It's time for what we tried earlier." Naruto told them.

"Gotcha whippersnapper. Been wantin' to see ya use this in a fight." Pa told him as he got ahold of Naruto's right shoulder and Ma got ahold of his left. "Fusion." Both exclaimed and bonded with him. Now he could get more natural chakra without worry.

When Akane got released from Naruto's body, he wondered if he could perform the toad fusion that he had up until then been unable to. Within the first week of having Akane around, he got away to a private spot long enough to summon the toad elders and try it out. All three were glad to see that he now could, like Jiraiya had been able to. This would help him out quite a bit later on, like now.

Madara however wasn't impressed. "So you got some new ugly accessories. How's that going to help you?"

"You might be surprised." Naruto said as he started to make a rasengan out of sage chakra. He wasn't sure how much damage he could do with it, but he had to see. Also, he couldn't let either Uchiha know that the fox demon wasn't in him anymore. So instead of trying to kill Madara, he was trying to find a way to make it out of here alive, and maybe see just what he could do to Madara. Once he got out of here, then he'd worry about how to handle the rest.

Naruto threw the chakra orb at his target, a feat that wasn't limited to the rasen-shuriken anymore thanks to him working on it. Madara used his displacement defense that made things pass thru him whenever he was attacked, and had the orb pass thru him. However, this attack wasn't harmless. Normally when Madara did this, he felt nothing, but this time, he actually felt pain. About half as much as it would have been had he taken the rasengan full force, but still there.

'How could this be? My defense is perfect. How could he have actually done some damage? Is he using the fox's chakra in that technique?' Madara thought as his body became solid again. The pain remained and seemed to sting more now, but there was no injury. It really confused him.

Naruto saw this and knew he had made an impact. 'Hmm... I may not be able to kill him without Akane-chan's chakra, but sage chakra may be able to do something to him. It's better than nothing.' "You guys holding up?" He asked the two old toads.

"Yeah, but this may be a tough one for you." Ma answered, trying to stay as motionless as possible.

"I agree. Maybe we need Bunta here with us." Pa added.

"Not a bad idea." Naruto commented before making the summoning signs again and trying to summon the boss toad. But instead, he got Gamakichi. "Dammit! Why can't I ever get the big guy on my first try?"

"Nice to see ya too Naruto." Gamakichi told him. "Should I go then?"

"Sure, you'd just get hurt. But before you go, find out if anyone's trying to find me and let them know I'm okay for now." Naruto told the orange toad.

Gamakichi winked. "Sure thing. Good luck." He then hopped away and out of the room.

Madara paid this no mind, for he was busy using his space-time manipulation skill to send Sasuke away from the battle zone, which was really just outside the hide-out. Then he faced the orange-clad shinobi. "Planning on inviting a few guests? Maybe I should too." After that, one by one, four portals opened up behind him, and a clone of Madara came out with a hostage. The hostages just happened to be the other four kages, trapped in a paralysis jutsu. The clones then disappeared, giving the real Madara their memories.

Naruto was stunned, and Madara smirked. "Oh, while my descendant was busy dealing with you, I had five clones go gather the five kages. Figured they'd want to see my plans come to fruition. It was really tough to get each one; they all put up a heckuva fight. Sadly, the one I sent to obtain the hokage couldn't find her, so she won't be attending. Don't worry, they won't interfere, just watch as I take the kyuubi from you and have everything fall into place for me."

'What happened, baa-chan? Are you still okay?' Naruto silently worried. "That's assuming you succeed."

"And why wouldn't I?"

"Because I've got something can kill you." Naruto answered, hoping his bluff wouldn't be discovered.

"Well, so do I."

Naruto showed no reaction and created many shadow clones, none of which had toads on their shoulders so the real one stood out. But he wasn't trying to hide now anyway; he was trying to buy time. Now instead of just trying to get himself out of here, he had to get four kages out too, one of which was a close friend of his. Naruto knew he couldn't just reveal he didn't have the kyuubi anymore, because then he'd be killed and Madara would tear the Land of Fire apart to find the fox demon. And odds were that Konoha would be the first place he'd look. Akane and Hinata, along with everyone around them, would be the first ones put in danger, then everyone in the known world. He couldn't allow that.

Naruto's clones tried to beat up Madara to see any weakness or law in his defenses. So far his displacement skill worked greatly and let their fists and kicks fl thru him. A few clones managed to break the sword he had on him. But when Madara punched a few back, a few more hit him from the back and made actual hits. And with the added strength he got while in sage mode, they did about as much damage as Lee or Sakura could. So Naruto saw that while Madara could make himself ghostly to defend himself, in order to actually fight back he had to be solid. And it looked like this principle applied to his whole body.

While this continued Naruto got ready to summon again. "I swear if it's Gamatatsu this time I'll feed him to the Inuzuka dogs." He didn't really mean it, but was in no mood for something to go wrong. Drawing on all the strength he could, he shouted "Summoning Jutsu" and Gamabunta showed up in front of him. And boy was he not so pleased about the situation.

"Now why am I in this cramped crawlspace?"

"Well, open the roof then." Naruto commented.

Gamabunta tried to glare at his summoner but couldn't turn to face him. So he pushed up and the ceiling began to crack. Several of Naruto's clones formed a protective dome over the still kages as the entire ceiling was torn to bits and throw aside. Now they were exposed to the open air from the once hidden underground shelter the last of the Akatsuki had used to move their bijuu-containing statue to.

"Kid, you owe me a lot of sake for this." Gamabunta grumbled.

"If we get out of this alive I can get you all the sake you want. But for now, try and take that guy down." Naruto told the toad while pointing to Madara. 'Hope Akane-chan's willing to do for him what she did for baa-chan.'

"I'm holding you to it." Gamabunta told him before he jumped, trying to flatten the ancient Uchiha. What was left of Naruto's clones grabbed the kages and took them out of the hit zone as quick as possible, while the real one did the same, just happening to end up next to the downed Sasuke. Gamabunta landed, missing only the eight-eyed statue. "Did I get him?" He asked as he began to stand up.

"Not quite. I'm curious, after crushing me like a bug, what were you planning on doing?" Madara taunted the large toad as he popped up in front of his eyes.

"Don't make light of me." Gamabunta commanded.

Madara just casually stepped down. "You don't intimidate me you oversized wallet. After all, despite all your strength you just can't kill me." Madara then felt something coming at him from behind, and stepped aside to avoid it. He saw it was a kunai, and apparently the one throwing it had been a small girl with red hair and blue eyes, standing next to an orange toad.

"Maybe he can't, but I can."


	35. Chapter 35

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, one of the Akatsuki would have been from Whirlpool. Which one I don't know, maybe one Kishimoto didn't create, but someone._

Chapter 35: New Kyuubi And Old Uchiha

"Maybe he can't, but I can."

At hearing those words, Madara stood plainly and just stared at the new girl who had uttered them. As far as he could plainly see, this was nothing but a child, and one who had a fighting spirit but not nearly enough experience to back it up. That was what her stance said, but her chakra said otherwise. Her chakra was overwhelming for someone her age, and it looked almost feral to his sharingan. Even so, he wanted to laugh at her bold claim.

Naruto however was shocked to see she had arrived. "A-Akane-chan? What are you doing here?" 'This can't be good. Please Akane-chan, don't show off. Whatever you do, don't let him know what you really are.'

Akane briefly sent Naruto a fond smile before reaching for another pocketed kunai. Gamakichi hopped on over to Naruto. "Hey man this girl was the closest one in the area and she said she could smell ya. Any idea who she is?"

"Someone who shouldn't be here." Naruto told the orange toad. His paternal concern for the girl was overriding the knowledge that she was necessary to defeat the enemy.

At this time Hinata showed up, wrapped her arms around the young girl, and immediately tried to pull Akane out of the danger zone. "Akane-chan, we're getting out of here now! This is too dangerous for you!"

Akane struggled to get loose. "But Okaa-san-"

"No 'buts' Akane-chan or I'll ground you for a week."

"Fine go ahead but I'm the only one who can get rid of this creep and I need to do it now." Akane replied as she kept trying to squirm free.

"What are you talking about?" Hinata asked, tightening her hold as best she could.

Just then, Tsunade, Kiba, and Shino showed up together and quickly looked over the fox girl to make sure no damage to her had been done yet. Madara smiled behind his mask now. "Ah, so the hokage came to me eh? Good, now everyone is here. Maybe a few unnecessa-" He couldn't say more because Gamabunta decided to try another attack just then. Luckily for him he activated his displacement defense in time so the large toad's fist passed thru him. He became solid again after he stepped aside. "Awful rude of you to interrupt me frog."

Gamabunta's left eye twitched. "Did you just call me a _frog_? I hate it when people make that mistake!" The boss toad then tried to crush the ancient Uchiha repeatedly, but to no avail. It sort of reminded Naruto of the first day he met Gamabunta. Everyone in the area had to rush away as quickly as possible to avoid being unintentional targets, dragging the motionless kages and Sasuke with them. Akane went along without protest for the moment.

Everyone regathered at one point. "Baa-chan, this guy's got some kind of paralysis jutsu on the other kages. Said he wanted all of you watch as he gained the last bijuu and took over the world. Couldn't find you though." Naruto told Tsunade. "Oh, and I've finally managed to bring Sasuke back to us." He added pointing to the disarmed missing nin.

Akane looked scared. "So he wants me?"

"That's why we told you not to come here!" Naruto and Hinata scolded together.

Akane looked sheepish, and then noticed Naruto's sage appearance. "Otou-san, what's with the frogs?"

"We're toads kid, not frogs." Ma and Pa Toad pointed out.

"What's the difference?"

"Plenty, but we'll save that discussion for later." Pa Toad Fukasaku answered.

"Yeah, you gotta get rid of that guy tonight, or else he'll just keep coming back." Ma Toad Shima added.

The shock wave of another attempted flattening by Gamabunta made them all stand up, those that could stand that is. "Okay then, Kiba and Shino, take Sasuke Uchiha back to Konoha and make sure he gets put in one of the best holding cells we have. And stand guard yourselves too so no sharingan-worshipping idiots try to help him. And take Akane-chan with you so-"

"NO! I'm staying and that's final!" Akane shouted, giving the fiercest glare an eight year-old ever could.

"Akane Uzumaki do as you're told!" Tsunade ordered, using her own intimidating glare.

Akane didn't flinch at all and met the old woman's eyes. "Baa-chan, the old kyuubi told me that I'm the only one who can truly kill Evil-Eye-jiji. I need to do this, especially if I'm the one he wants."

"And what makes you so special?" Tsunade asked.

"Because she's a bijuu, and only a bijuu can kill Madara Uchiha." Naruto whispered so no one extra could overhear. Sure, Sasuke had passed out by now and the other kages looked catatonic, but there was still a chance any of them could still hear something.

Everyone looked at Naruto. "You knew that? How?" Akane asked.

"So I was right?" He asked, and his daughter nodded. "Good. In that case, I need her to fight with me, baa-chan. It's the only way to get rid of Akatsuki once and for all." Hinata looked uneased and subconsciously reached out for Akane's arm to pull her closer. So Naruto placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Hinata, I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to our girl."

"Naruto, get out of this one alive and that jounin promotion is as good as yours." Tsunade added to give him more motivation to do this quickly and safely. In all honesty, she felt he should already be classed as one but rank was a tricky thing in the ninja world. One had to go thru the academy to become a genin, and a genin had to go thru several missions and the exams to become a chuunin. To become a jounin, one had to wait a minimum of two years and then either get a field promotion from the hokage or take the jounin test. The two year minimum as a chuunin, which Naruto had already passed, was designed to let the ninja have enough time to see if jounin-rank was something they needed to strive for, and not something that could legally be ignored. So Tsunade had to wait to give him his full promotion, and now this was the perfect time to give him the rank and then officially declare him her successor.

"What abou me Baa-chan?" Akane eagerly asked, wondering what reward she'd get for this.

"Hmm... you'll just have to find out now won't you?" Another shock wave made them get back on the right topic. "Okay, Kiba, Shino, get going. Hinata, you stay with me to help the other kages and these two when they're done. Naruto, Akane-chan, just don't die."

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Everyone said together, although Naruto and Akane said 'baa-chan' instead, and then lept into action. Kiba and Shino picked up Sasuke, forgetting about his missing arm which Gamabunta has probably crunched beyond repair by now, and fled to Konoha. Hinata and Tsunade tried to break the paralysis jutsu on the other kages, starting with Gaara, the one mostly likely to help them out without much fuss. And Naruto and Akane went to see how the boss toad was holding up.

Gamabunta wasn't looking so good. He was looking tired and already had his sword out. He was panting but somehow still kept his pipe in place. "What the... 'pant'... hell are you?"

"The guy who's going to bring peace to this world." Madara plainly answered him, showing no signs of fatigue or damage himself.

"By controlling everyone else. That's not real peace." Naruto added as he tried to attack him from behind. But Madara became displaced again and Naruto passed thru him.

"So? Even if it's not real, it's still more peaceful than today's world. Who cares if it was forced onto people?"

"I do, and I'm not the only one." Naruto answered while trying to create another sage rasengan. This time Madara shushined to the side. "A-ha. So this jutsu can do something to you, even if you become ghostly so you have no choice but to dodge."

"So? If you can't hit me then it's no good." Madara commented before a swarm of Akane clones tried to tear him apart. In the end they did nothing to him and he hit them all, destroying them. "And how low do you have to be to get a child to help you out?"

"I'm not an ordinary child. I'm the one who's gonna kill you, Evil-Eye-jiji!" Akane snarled, crouched like a fox ready to pounce.

"Kid, I don't think I can do anything more, so if you don't mind, me and Kichi will be headin' outta here." Gamabunta told his summoner as his son hopped on his knee.

"Okay then. See ya later, and thanks."

"And remember you owe me more sake and I expect to get it soon." The large amphibian added before he and the smaller one left.

'That boy and his booze.' Pa Toad mumbled internally. 'Well, at least his liver's big enough for it.'

Paying no mind to the lose of the big toad, Akane summoned the most shadow clones she could, which apparently was roughly the same number Naruto used when fighting Gaara in the Suna/Oto invasion, and had them ambush him. Madara fought them off but every time he got rid of one ten more showed up in its place. In the meantime the real Akane had one clone stay with her as she tried to create a rasengan of her own. It looked better now but still wasn't usable yet.

While Madara and Akane were busy, Naruto began to work on making a sage rasen-shuriken, which he figured would be his strongest move against this guy. He had to do something, because even if it had to be Akane who made the final blow, he could at least make it easier for her to do. Her clones were doing no better than his own, and while he knew that her chakra would somehow be able to kill him, he had no idea exactly how it needed to be used to do that. And judging from the looks of it, neither did Akane.

Naruto got his sage rasen-shuriken ready, ran up towards Madara, and threw it at him. Several of Akane's clones got hit and destroyed in the process, but Madara was too preoccupied with destroying them himself to notice, and got struck with the attack. He had been solid since he felt there was no need to become ghostly when dealing with some girl's shadow clones, so this time he took the full force of the attack. And since it was made from natural chakra, it hurt him quite a bit.

Madara screamed in pain for quite possibly the first time in a century or two. The chakra orb with wind blades had tore into him and left him bleeding, with nothing missing except some fragments of clothing and skin. Since several clones took the hit first, it was weaker than intended when it hit him so he wasn't cleaved or anything, just cut up. He fell to his knees as he winced and all the red-haired clones stepped back from him, curiously wondering what just happened. The real Akane stopped working on her rasengan to look as well.

Madara glared at Naruto. "Well, congratulations boy, no one has been able to do that for a long time. And I haven't had to do this for a long time either." Madara went thru about six hand signs quickly, too quickly for Naruto to identify. "Injury Rejection Jutsu." A dome of white chakra, similar to a Hyuuga Rotation, formed around the masked Uchiha, and all his wounds started healing and his clothes became one piece again. His blood even retracted back into his body before the cuts closed completely. The rest of Akane's clones tried to stop him, but were destroyed upon contact with the dome. Once finished, the dome dissipated and he stood up, looking like he had never been touched. "Y'see, even if someone can hurt me, it doesn't really matter."

"It does if I do it." Akane confidently proclaimed. Only one clone remained, the one that was trying to help her make a rasengan.

Madara gave her, the real one that is, a dry dull look. "You sure got a lot of guts girl, but if that was all you needed to win then no one would lose. Seriously, what can you possibly do to me?"

"Surprise ya." Both Akane's said.

Madara chuckled and crossed his arms. "OK then, I dare you to."

Akane looked over towards Naruto and saw he didn't like this. "I can do this, just let me try." He didn't like it at all, but relented and kept ready to interfere if anything went wrong. "Thanks, and I won't disappoint." Both Akane's rushed towards Madara, careful not to look him in the eyes, and looking like they were going to try and make a rasengan again. Madara humored them by just standing there, ready to take what they dished out and shrug it off. But instead of forming a rasengan, both Akane's transformed in puffs of smoke. The first one to reveal herself was the clone, and she was doing the sexy jutsu. "So, do I disappoint you?" She asked coyly while standing provocatively.

Madara's eyes widened and his nose erupted like a bloody geyser. The fact that he was wearing a mask meant that he was about to drown in his own blood, and it was already covering his face and eyes. Blind and unable to breathe as well, he tore off the mask, struggling to maintain steady while he stood. Once the mask was off he coughed up some blood and rubbed his eyes so he could see.

All the while the real Akane had transformed into her nine-tailed fox form and bit him on the right calf. If Madara felt anything he didn't react to this. She let go and ran off to be next to Naruto while the clone dispersed. "Got him Otou-san. The rest should be easy." She said, still in her fox form.

"What was that?" Naruto asked.

"Well, I was forced to see the old kyuubi, and she told me that this guy could be killed by me, even if I just bit him. And also not to look him right in the eyes. And it worked."

"He doesn't look dead." Naruto pointed out.

"Keep watching." Akane replied, hoping that she had succeeded and not just made this guy mad.

Naruto and Akane kept looking at Madara who at first showed no signs of death. However, Naruto then saw that his hands were becoming vastly wrinkled and thin quickly, as if his age was fast-forwarding. The same could be seen regarding his face. Now Naruto understood the situation; somehow Akane's bite cancelled out whatever had been keeping him younger than he was supposed to be. Now that it was gone, he was becoming his true age, one no human being could still be alive at.

As Madara's age started catching up to him, he managed to get the drying and flaking blood out of his eyes long enough to look at his two opponents. With his chakra depleting rapidly, his sharingan deactivated, so he couldn't do anything to them. But he could still see, and he saw a red fox with nine-tails sitting in front of him. "No... it can't be... you mean you were...?"

"Believe it."

Madara coughed as his body looked more and more like a mummy. "There will be others... I won't be the last... to try and..." He couldn't say another word, for at this point he was too feeble-limbed to stay upright even if crouched. So he fell over, and the sound of brittle bones snapping could be heard. Madara Uchiha, Tobi of Akatsuki, was finally dead. Cause of death: induced old age.

_The story's not over yet. I'd say about two more chapters to go, maybe three. Next chapter will deal with the other eight bijuu and the other kages, and maybe the handling of Sasuke and the ROOT rejects. Then getting everything settled for the Uzumaki family in the long run, and maybe a wedding, before this comes to a close._

_Any suggestions for things you'd like to see before then? All are welcome even if not all will be used._


	36. Chapter 36

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Naruto Shippuden would definitely not be broadcast on the Disney channel. How many Naruto fans out there watch Disney too?_

_Even though few people actually complained about Madara's death in the last chapter, I'm sorry to those that were disappointed._

Chapter 36: Eight More Bijuu And Four More Kages

Naruto had a clone confirm Madara's death by cutting off his mummified head. Even if by some miracle he wasn't dead before, he surely was now. Still, burning the body was probably the next best thing to do here. The clone dispersed and the real one patted the nine-tailed red fox on the head. "You did good, Akane-chan."

Her tails started wagging. "Thanks Otou-san. Think I got what it takes to be the hokage after you?"

"After seeing that, of course. You still gotta wait until you're older you know." They heard some rustling behind them. "Better turn back to your other form." Akane nodded and transformed into a normal child. Then the two stood up and went to see what was going on. "Oh, thanks for the help guys. You can probably go home now." He told the two old toads.

Ma and Pa Toad disconnected from his shoulders and landed on the ground. "Great work sonny. See you next time." Pa told him.

"You'll forgive us if we say we're not hoping you'll need us again so soon I hope." Ma added.

Naruto nodded. "Sure. Again, thanks." The toads disappeared, and Naruto released his sage appearance, looking normal again.

Hinata and Tsunade were kneeling next to the four foreign kages, who now looked like they could move under their own power again. Hinata noticed Naruto and Akane approach, looking well and unhurt, and immediately embraced her fiancee. "Is it... over?"

"You bet. He's gone for sure this time."

"Thanks kami." Hinata stated before moving to hug Akane. "Don't you ever scare me like that again. By the way, you're still grounded for a week."

"But Okaa-san..."

"You want it to be absolutely no ramen? I'll tell the Ichiraku's."

Akane whimpered and answered meekly and quietly. "I'll be good."

Tsunade approached and patted Naruto on the shoulder. "Congrats gaki. Once we get home, that jounin promotion's officially yours. You've definitely earned it."

"Thanks baa-chan. So when do I become rokudaime?"

"After I teach you the ropes and retire, knucklehead."

"What exactly happened?" The raikage asked as soon as he stood up, just before the other kages did too.

"The last of the Akatsuki is gone. We don't have to worry about them anymore, thanks to Naruto Uzumaki here." Tsunade told them all.

All kages looked at the blonde shinobi, but Gaara was the first to do anything. He stepped forward, smiled, and offered out his hand. "I always knew it would be you Uzumaki to finish the job. Well done."

Naruto took his hand. "Coming from you Gaara that means a lot. Thanks."

"What about Sasuke Uchiha? What's going on in regards to him?" The raikage asked sternly.

"He's disarmed." Naruto told him. "Unless he gets healed by someone as good as baa-chan-"

"And I'm not going to, not that way anyway." Tsunade interjected.

"Anyway, he'll most likely never be a ninja again." Naruto finished.

"Not good enough. He needs to be punished like the villain he is." The raikage insisted, thinking of Kirabi at the moment.

"Don't worry, I can assure you he will be." Tsunade told him. "No matter what anyone in Konoha may claim, his kekkei genkai and heritage won't be enough to let him off the hook here."

"You should just execute him and be done with it." The tsuchikage suggested.

"That is tempting, I'll admit that." Tsunade commented.

"Can anyone tell me why we're here anyway? I was just about to ta... well, that's not important. Why are we here?" The mizukage asked curiously.

Naruto cleared his throat to catch all their attentions. "Well, the old man told me he planned on acquiring the kyuubi tonight and fulfilling his goals. He also said he wanted you all there to see him do just that."

"Hmm... must be because of our encounter with him at the gokage summit two years ago." Gaara mentioned.

The mizukage slowly nodded. "Yeah, makes sense. Probably wanted to show off or scare us."

"So Madara Uchiha is really gone?" The tsuchikage asked. Naruto nodded. "Good. Now I'll feel better about retiring and naming my successor."

Akane, who was off to the side with Hinata for all this, started whispering to her. "Okaa-san, I smell something coming towards us."

"Is it bad?" Hinata whispered back.

"Not sure. Smells like a bunch of animals. Can I go look?"

Hinata didn't answer right away. On the one hand, her daughter had already gotten into enough trouble today. On the other hand, she just fought off a sannin-level ninja without getting a scratch. What harm could a few animals do? "... alright, but be quick and don't be rash."

"What rash? Do I have a rash?" Akane asked, missing the intended meaning, and checked for any sore skin she might have.

Hinata sighed. "No, I mean don't do anything foolish."

"Oh, well why didn't you just say that then?" Akane asked as she stood up. She didn't wait for an answer before she went to see what animals had shown up. None of them smelled like foxes, but maybe they had tried using some other species to try and capture her this time. If so, she had to get the message across that she wasn't someone to be messed with.

Akane broke away from the group of adults and made it to the edge of the battlefield, still close enough for Hinata to come to her if something came up. The area was trampled flat from Gamabunta's stomping of the terrain, so Akane saw debris everywhere. Most of it was tree branches, but some belonged to the building Sasuke fought Naruto in, and some debris looked like it was part of some large broken statue. From behind a chunk of stone, another young girl about Akane's age came into her view. She noticed two things about this girl: that she was unclothed, and she had a raccoon tail and ears.

Akane rubbed her eyes in disbelief and looked again. Now she saw another girl, this one also unclothed but with two cat tails and ears. Then another tailed girl and another, until eight were looking at her. Akane saw they were frightened and smelled like various animals. Without really understanding why, she stepped forward and showed off her fox ears and tails. "Hi, I'm Akane Uzumaki. Who are you all?"

The girls looked at one another for a few moments. Then the cat-tailed one spoke up. "I... I don't know. Where are we?"

Akane had no idea what to tell them. "We're... somewhere far from my home. That's all I know."

With nothing else going on, Akane looked over them all curiously. The raccoon girl had one tail, rings around her pale blue eyes, dusty yellow hair colored like sand, and was slightly pudgy than other girls her age, but by no means as thick as an Akimichi her age. The cat girl had two tails, green slitted eyes, slick hair that looked midnight blue and black at the same time in patches, and was quite lean. The one with three reptilian tails had flat aqua blue hair domed like a turtle shell and a thin red stripe that went from her chin to her scalp crossing her right eye, both eyes colored pink. The one with four monkey tails had red hair with yellow bangs, black eyes, and looked a little more muscular than the other girls. The one with five horse tails had blue-tinted white hair, orange eyes, pale skin, and looked agile and quick. The one with six slug tails had purple-tinted white hair, golden eyes, and was a little pudgier than the raccoon girl, and shorter than them all. The one with insect wings and a green ribbon tail had purple hair, orange eyes, and had a normal build for a young girl. The one with eight octopus tentacles had spiked brown hair, reddish-orange eyes, and was the tallest and strongest looking of them all.

'Why do I get the feeling I should know these eight?' Akane asked herself.

"Hey Akane-chan, that's long enough. So come..." Hinata started to tell her as she approached, but stopped when she saw the new children present. "Where'd they all come from?"

"I don't know Okaa-san. I think they're what I smelled." Akane told her.

Hinata looked them all over, and could tell right away these were the remaining bijuu. 'Guess they all turned to children too. Hope we can find them families, because Naruto and I can't raise them all.'

Hinata was about to go back to Naruto, but turned and saw he was there behind her, along with all five kages. All of them were surprised to see several children with animal ears and tails. And then they noticed that Akane had the same features visible. "So... what are we going to do about this?" Tsunade asked.

"I can't take care of them all baa-chan. Akane-chan's a handfull already."

"Do you guys know who they are?" Akane asked, heedless of her foxy attributes since no one was trying to hurt her yet.

"Well Akane-chan, I guess you could say they're your cousins." Tsunade told her.

Akane smiled. "Wow! I have cousins? Neat!"

"Care to inform the rest of us Hokage-sama?" Gaara asked.

Tsunade turned to face the kages. "Well, some time ago the kyuubi no kitsune was forced out of Naruto's body. In the process it changed into an innocent amnesiac child, which you see before you. And I'd bet a year's salary that the same thing happened to the other eight bijuu here after being freed from the Akatsuki's clutches."

"The bijuu are kids now?" The tsuchikage asked.

"Yeah. It's called phoenix-something." Akane told them. "A bunch of fox demons told me about it, saying it happens every time one of us dies. The old kyuubi is dead and gone for good, and I'm the new one."

"You're the kyuubi that destroyed so many places?" The raikage asked.

Akane shook her head. "Nope. Didn't you hear me the first time? That kyuubi is dead. I'm completely different. And I'm going to be a great ninja to make up for her crimes."

The kages looked at her curiously, impressed by her youthful spirit and optimism. The raikage then cleared his throat. "If the bijuu really are reborn as new entities, then I must insist that the nibi and hachibi rightfully go to Kumo, where they can be trained properly as ninja too."

"They better be treated right, you hear me." Naruto sternly told him. "Even if they are demons, they're children too and deserve to have the life any normal child would."

"Why would you demand that?" The tsuchikage asked.

"Because my daughter's one of them, and she's a person first and a demon second. Same goes for her cousins. And I'll raise all nine of them myself if I have to, before I even think of letting them end of in the care of someone who'll treat them like animals or tools to be used like Danzo-teme would have." Naruto boldly claimed.

Hinata smiled and clasped his hand. "I agree."

All five kages were impressed with his determination, and knew that if they wanted to stay on his good side they should do as he wished. And considering the power this guy had backing him up, his good side was exactly where they wanted to stay. "Very well." The raikage nodded. "I'll entrust them into the custody of those I know can do as you wish. Hopefully this means that when you're hokage, you'll consider an alliance between our villages."

"Make sure no one tries to claim the byakugan again too and you've got a deal." Naruto added, making Hinata smile more.

"Naruto, I think I should probably take the ichibi with me. It might be for the best." Gaara told his friend.

"I was thinking that too. Just make sure this Shukaku doesn't become a maniac like the last one."

Gaara nodded, and soon the tsuchikage and mizukage selected the bijuu to go to their villages to be raised and cared for. Each one picked two since all eight were nervous and didn't want to be split up too much. Gaara got claim on the ichibi and shichibi, thinking he and his new wife Matsuri could care for them. The raikage kept just the nibi and hachibi, already seeing a little of Yugito and Kirabi in their eyes. The mizukage claimed the sanbi and gobi, feeling they'd be most at home in a place like Kiri. So the tsuchikage got the yonbi and the rokubi.

After everything was settled between them, names were already starting to be given. Gaara gave the ichibi the name Shukaku again, and she swiftly called him 'Otou-san', feeling a strong connection to him like Akane did to Naruto. Gaara was surprised by this show of affection, even more so when the shichibi, now named Mushi, did the same but much more subtly. The others wondered if they should do the same with their kages, but were all told no. The nibi was named Yugiko and the hachibi was named Kirako because of their previous hosts. The sanbi was named Shinbou, the yonbi was named Kyoko, the gobi was named Fuzei, and the rokubi was named Misao. They also worked on looking fully human, which apparently wasn't something that only the kyuubi could do among them.

Before everyone got ready to head home, Tsunade had one more thing to say. "Now remember everyone, in order for things to work out for these girls and our villages, no one may know who or what they really are. The ones you select to be their legal guardians may know so they know what they're getting into. But the fewer people in on this, the better. That way, no unnecessary fights will happen because someone's afraid of them. Agreed?" The others nodded. "Good then. Now let's all go home."

"Say hi to Matsuri and the others for us Gaara. Oh, and try and come to our wedding later." Naruto and Hinata told the sand wielder.

"Absolutely, old friend."

All groups said their goodbyes and left for home, taking some demons with them. In Konoha's case, just one that was riding Naruto's back and ready to sleep. "You okay about not having them around, Akane-chan?" Tsunade asked as they ran.

"Yeah. I've got a lot of family and friends back home so I'm not worried about being lonely. They all were, so they need to be together more. I'm sure they'll be fine. When can I see them again?"

"We'll see about that later Akane-chan. Right now we gotta go home and deal with something that's long overdue." Naruto answered.

"What?"

"What'll happen to a certain guy with a certain evil eye."


	37. Chapter 37

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Hinata's hitai-ate would be orange, for obvious reasons._

_To anyone wondering why all the bijuu were girls last chapter, I figured that since they were all once part of the same creature at one time, they had to all at least be the same gender if not species. And since I made the kyuubi a female here, I had to do the same with the rest._

Chapter 37: The Eve Of The Uchiha's Fate

After a lot of running, Naruto, Hinata, Tsunade, and Akane made it back to Konoha. Waiting for them at the gate were the guards Izumo and Kotetsu, along with Kakashi, Sakura, Kiba, Shino, Kurenai, and Shizune. Everyone smiled to see the others return safely, although you couldn't see it on Shino's face. Before they could say anything, Tsunade held a finger to her lips, telling them to be quiet, before gesturing to a sleeping Akane. Everyone nodded and decided to save it for later, and everyone except Izumo and Kotetsu left for Naruto's apartment.

"Where's the Uchiha?" Tsunade whispered to Kiba and Shino.

"He's contained as well as blindfolded. My insects, Akamaru, and Anko-san are standing guard as we speak." Shino answered quietly.

"Good enough for now. But it's going to get worse for him." Tsunade whispered in response.

Nobody else said a word until they got to Naruto's apartment. Naruto and Hinata entered while the others waited outside. They all wanted to talk and felt that for the girl's sake it was better to do that away from her so they wouldn't wake her. Naruto gently placed the little girl on her mattress and put the blankets over her. Hinata patted her head and Akane seemed content and relaxed. The two adults smiled and quietly went back outside.

Everyone stood at the base of the building together before they decided to actually discuss what was on their minds. "So what exactly happened out there?" Kakashi asked for everyone.

Tsunade chose to answer, using a fabricated story to guard Akane. "Sasuke and the last member of the Akatsuki tried to take the kyuubi from Naruto. Naruto fought off Sasuke and rendered him one arm less and drained of a lot of blood. Then the Akatsuki member, Madara Uchiha, tried to finish off Naruto, but he used the kyuubi to kill him." Technically it wasn't a complete lie.

"Are you sure about that?" Kakashi asked Naruto. "If he's been alive all this time, maybe he's just playing dead."

Naruto shook his head. "No way. I cut off his head myself then baa-chan burned the body. Nobody can play dead that well. Besides, it turned out that the kyuubi's chakra was his weakness, and getting it into him in even a small way was enough to kill him. Trust him, the geezer's dead."

"Wow Naruto, you must be the strongest person on the planet to pull that off." Kiba remarked.

Tsunade nodded. "As of this moment, Naruto Uzumaki is an official jounin. And first thing tomorrow, I'm declaring him my successor."

"Why not now?" Naruto asked.

"I need to get that registered and I'd rather wait until after I get some sleep myself first." Tsunade said, trying to hold back a yawn. "After that, Sasuke Uchiha goes to trial. Just a formality before he gets punished."

"How bad do you think it's going to be, sensei?" Sakura asked, earning her a few looks.

"It's going to be bad. Don't delude yourself thinking otherwise, you hear?" Tsunade told her.

Sakura nodded. "I know. He's a criminal and needs to suffer for it. I was just curious." She then turned to face Naruto. "By the way, thanks for keeping your vow, even if you didn't have to anymore."

"I never go back on my word." The blonde shinobi stated confidently. "I'm just glad you're not trying to beat me senseless for hurting him."

"I'm not that way anymore, and besides, it's not like you two would just waltz in together holding hands and laughing."

Naruto got a sour face. "Thanks Sakura-chan, now I'm going to have that for a nightmare tonight."

"Well, I think we all could use some sleep. We can discuss more before the Uchiha's trial." Tsunade offered, unable to hold back a yawn now. "Night gaki."

"Night baa-chan."

"Good job Naruto. I'm sure you're father would be proud." Kakashi said, proud of the student he barely did anything for years ago.

"Thanks sensei. I sure hope so."

Sakura gave Naruto a friendly hug, which still bothered Hinata to see. "I owe you one Naruto. You're a good guy." She then mouthed 'And you're a lucky girl' to Hinata, making her grin.

"That's what I've been tried to tell you for years Sakura-chan." He told the pink-haired medic as she let go.

"I'm glad you got back alive, Naruto-san. It wouldn't have been good for your daughter to lose a parent so soon." Kurenai added.

"I never had any doubts. You always triumph when it matters the most." Shino stated.

"Guess having you as hokage won't be so bad after all." Kiba remarked.

"Thanks guys, now if you don't mind, I'm exhausted." Naruto told them.

"Alright, see ya tomorrow." Kurenai said as they all walked away and waved goodbye.

Naruto turned to see Hinata going upstairs towards the apartment. "Hey Hinata, shouldn't you be going to your family?"

She gave him a loving grin. "That's exactly what I'm doing. Coming?"

Naruto smiled back and joined her. Both went inside and immediately went to Naruto's front room. Not bothering with undressing or anything, they just collapsed on the couch and went to sleep in each other's arms.

* * *

Morning came too soon for most people in Konoha and today was going to be a memorable day indeed. Tsunade dragged herself into her office and opened a bottle of whiskey that she had been given on her birthday courtesy of Akane's paint job on the monument. Which was still there by the way but faded. Her stash wasn't even one-eighth depleted yet. Tsunade grabbed Naruto's record, added in the new information about his skills and abilities, and changed his status from chuunin to jounin.

"One step closer to your dream kid. And soon, you'll be there." A knock was heard at the door. "Come in."

Naruto and Akane entered. Hinata was at the Hyuuga compound for the moment letting them know she was back. "Hey baa-chan. Thought it might be good to come by. And isn't it a little early to be drinking?"

Tsunade shrugged. "It's five o'clock somewhere."

"But not here." Akane stated innocently.

Naruto chuckled. "She's got a point, baa-chan."

The hokage sighed in defeat. "Well, good thing you're here. The promotion's official. You're now a licensed jounin. And I'll tell the council you're my successor after the trial. Come here every day at four so I can instruct you what to expect from being hokage."

Naruto nodded. Akane looked curious. "What do I get? I was part of the fight too. Do I get to be a jounin?"

"Sorry Akane-chan. You still have to go thru the academy and become a genin first."

"No fair. I was the one who killed Evil-Eye-jiji you know. Don't I get anything?" Akane asked, crossing her arms and looking ready to pout.

"You will, just not the same thing your father gets."

"Well what is it then?"

Tsunade had to carefully think of a good answer, having none beforehand. "We'll surprise you with it later."

Akane looked liked she didn't want to wait. "Fine."

"Hey baa-chan, now that Sasuke's back, what are you going to do with him?" Naruto asked, sounding very professional about the issue.

Tsunade told a deep breath and rested her chin on her clasped hands. "Well, so far all the high-ranking ninja who know about it now are calling for a quick execution. However, we have a standard process to follow when we recover traitors. We take them to the courtroom and give them a trial, mostly as a show of formality so the civilians won't think we're complete barbarians. There the traitor is given a chance to defend themselves, and anyone who knew the traitor beforehand is requested to give testimony. So you, Sakura, and Kakashi need to be there. A few civilian council members and ninja council members listen in and come to a decision. But ultimately, the final outcome is mine alone. The testimony and council votes are just to make sure I don't make a rash or biased judgment."

"Any idea what they might vote on?" Naruto curiously asked.

"I have a feeling that the ninja members will do here what they generally do in all these cases, and that's call for something severe. Most ninja don't allow villians a second chance, and given Sasuke's circumstances, I see no reason why they wouldn't do the same here. It's the civilians that worry me."

Naruto groaned. "Don't tell me they still kiss his ass and worship the ground he walks on just because of his eyes and name."

Akane looked sickened. "They kiss his... butt? Yuck!"

"Not literally Akane-chan. It means they always treat him like he's some kind of daimyo." Naruto told her.

"Why?"

"It's because of those eyes of his. They're afraid that if they don't cater to him he'll decide to go join some other village that will." Naruto explained.

"Which is exactly what he did anyway." Tsunade added. 'What a bunch of idiots. On the surface it sounds good, but anybody so petty they're willing to throw away their home because someone else offers something too isn't worth trying to keep ahold of. Hell, even Orochimaru couldn't keep ahold of the Uchiha. Only an idiot would think Sasuke is redeemable at this point.'

Akane snorted. "Hmmph. What a teme." Naruto couldn't help but snicker, and even Tsunade smiled.

"Anyway Naruto, I can't guarantee it, but I have a feeling that there's a chance the civilians won't be too much of a problem. With Danzo, Homura, and Koharu no longer in power, they can't sway the rest into following them like sheep. Oh, that reminds me, there's someone who wanted to tell you something. She's down in the interrogation ward; better take a look later. But with those three gone, the civilians can actually come to their own opinions. Maybe it won't be the most convenient one for us, but at least there's a chance."

Naruto nodded in understanding. "Thanks baa-chan. I'll be sure to be there."

"Am I supposed to be there?" Akane asked.

"Well, you did say he tried to beat you up in Wave. So yeah, in case that comes up so you can confirm it." Tsunade told the young girl.

"When is it?" Naruto asked.

"I've already set the notices out throughout the clans. It should start at 4:00 pm today." Tsunade answered.

"Okay then, we'll see you at four. Try to be sober by then baa-chan." Naruto teased.

"It takes more than one bottle to affect me gaki." The hokage yelled as the two left. Once they were gone, she took another sip. "Something tells me that kid's going to do just fine."

Shizune came in about two minutes later. "This early Tsunade-sama? Think of your health."

"Hey, the sooner I can't do this job, the sooner Naruto can."

* * *

Naruto and Akane slowly walked down to the interrogation ward. As they went down the halls they came across Anko, who was relieved from guarding Sasuke's cell for a while. "Hey guys, what brings you two here?"

Akane eyed her dango stick. "Got another one?"

Anko shook her head. "Sorry kid, last one. And you're not going to fight me for it this time."

"I can try." Akane teased.

"Akane-chan, you're already grounded. Do you want it to be longer?" Naruto asked. Akane settled down. "Good girl." He then turned his attention back to Anko. "The hokage said someone down here wanted to see me."

Anko looked upwards as she tried to recall something. "Oh yeah, I think I know what she meant. Come this way." She then finished off the dango before Akane got too tempted to try and take it anyway.

Anko led them to a room with a large viewing window. Inside, one could see Dansue sleeping against the wall next to a black tent. Naruto sensed he should recognize the girl but couldn't. "Who's she? I don't know her."

"Well, when that scumbag Uchiha came by the other day trying to draw you out, he used her and her little brother to keep others from following you. He tricked them and they fell for it completely. Also, they claim to have been rejects from that ROOT project Danzo used to have."

Naruto thought of Sai for an instant. "So what do they want with me?"

"Go ask her. Don't worry, there's knock-out gas valves armed and ready if they try anything." Anko stated.

Naruto cautiously went inside, after telling Akane to wait with the snake jounin, and slowly walked towards Dansue. The electric girl must have heard him, for she started stirring and opening her eyes. She saw someone new wearing orange clothes. "Are you the one who got rid of Danzo-teme?"

"I guess you could say that. Thanks to me and Shizune-nee-chan, we stopped him from killing the hokage and he was executed for it."

Dansue beamed and stood up, then embraced Naruto tightly. He was surprised and tried to squirm his way out but it was hard. "Thank you. That son of a bitch ruined our lives and I've been wanting to kill him for years. Thank you, and sorry for helping the duck-ass earlier."

Naruto now managed to pry her off. "You're welcome, anything else?"

"Yeah. As soon as Ichi-chan and I finish doing time here, we'll pledge ourselves to you for the rest of our lives."

"You don't have to-"

"Yes I do!" Dansue forcefully cut him off. "You've earned it. If it wasn't for you, me and my little brother might have been sent to some snake guys to be experimented on. You saved us from an even worse hell than Danzo-teme put us in. And now Ichi-chan might be able to become a normal little boy sometime soon. How can I not pledge myself to you? I'm yours to command from this day forth."

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Well, thanks. Just do what you gotta do for now. I'll see you later then."

"Do you have to leave so soon?" Dansue asked, hoping to convince him to accept her.

"Yeah, I gotta go be with my fiancee then go to a trial. Catch you later." Naruto then left the room.

'Why are all the good ones taken?' Dansue asked herself with a sigh.


	38. Chapter 38

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Sasuke would not be alive at the ending._

Chapter 38: The Trial of Sasuke Uchiha

4:00 pm came and the trial to determine Sasuke's fate had begun. Word had spread amongst the village regarding the capture of the last Uchiha and many came down to the courthouse to see what would happen. Oddly, more came for a sense of closure to the whole issue than any love for the Uchiha. Over the years gone he lost more and more supporters, and those that did support him kept finding it harder to, especially regarding his most recent actions.

Konoha's courthouse, using for trials regarding civilian crimes and great ninja crimes, was packed with people. If possible the whole village might have been there. But they couldn't all fit in and since this was a ninja trial the clans got first entry. Most civilians had to watch the broadcast at home on TV; ninja trials were often allowed on TV in the village so the civilians would know of their crimes and punishment. And in a case like this, it was best if no one in the city was kept ignorant or uncertain of Sasuke's fate.

Sasuke Uchiha was kept chained to a chair. A few seals placed around his eyes the previous night, by Kakashi on Tsunade's order, would ensure he couldn't activate his sharingan, at least not painlessly. His one remaining arm was chained to his side so he couldn't attempt any hand signs if somehow possible for him and he had been stripped of all weaponry. As expected, he did not look in a good mood right now.

In front of him was Tsunade acting as judge. To her left were the shinobi council members and to the right were the civilian council members, giving a supreme court feel to everyone. No jury, for they were the jury here, with Tsunade acting as official head and declarer. Behind him were the audience and witnesses to be called.

Naruto and Hinata were present with Akane, seated not too far behind Sasuke. To Naruto's left were Sakura and Kakashi, who were aware they were going to be called on to testify regarding Sasuke. Naruto was worried about what they may say, considering their past favoritism to the Uchiha. Even if now they were past that, what if they still tried to defend him or call for a light sentence? Naruto figured that if they did, he would have to break away from them completely. For he simply couldn't be a team with those that continued to be blinded by the Uchiha name.

To Hinata's right were the Inuzukas, which usually stayed close to the criminal to detect anything odd about them or apprehend them if they did anything foolish. None had their animal partners present, as was ruled in the courthouse. Kiba was about to sit next to Hinata, but when Shiba saw Akane, the two adults decided to let the two kids sit next to each other between them.

"Good to see you again Shiba-chan. Everything going well?" Akane cheerfully greeted.

"Yeah, been practicing but I'm still not much better." The shy Inuzuka answered. "I can do that tree-walking thing your father showed me now though."

"Keep it down you two. It's about to start." Hinata gently warned.

"Akane-chan?" Someone asked behind them, and she turned to see Noburo sitting there with Tenten and her father. "Thought I recognized you. Hi."

Akane remembered the last time the two were together and blushed. "Oh, h-hi Noburo-kun. N-nice to see you again." She looked forward before her blush was painfully obvious.

Nevertheless, Hinata witnessed all of it and grinned. 'I always knew she was Naruto's daughter at heart, and apparently she really is mine too.'

With a voice amplifier jutsu used to enable everyone to hear what was being said, Shizune started the trial then. "The trial of Konohagakure versus Sasuke Uchiha will now begin. Everyone be seated and stay silent." She paused for a moment to ensure everyone did. "Sasuke Uchiha has committed several atrocious crimes against the village, and here we shall determine his fate."

"For the record," Tsunade added once Shizune finished, "Sasuke Uchiha will not be allowed to continue being a ninja after this is over. Nor will he have access to any funds and deeds in the Uchiha name. He forfeited all rights to claim them when he left the village."

"You can't do that! Those are mine by right!" Sasuke argued loudly.

"And you waived that right." Tsunade countered, not the least bit intimidated by him. "Please continue Shizune."

The poison-using medic nin nodded. "You are charged of the following crimes. Betrayal of the village to a well-known and confirmed enemy. Attempted murder of a leaf shinobi with lethal intent on several occasions. Conspired to aid a criminal organization. Attempted kidnapping of a leaf shinobi with lethal intent. And endangerment of a leaf village child on one proven occasion. How do you plead?" A few whispers were heard in the audience after the last charge, as not even the ninja had heard Sasuke had tried to harm a kid in the village.

"Not guilty." Sasuke plainly answered.

Tsunade arched an eyebrow. "Care to explain exactly why? And I better not hear the words 'because I'm an Uchiha' or so help me you'll be held in contempt of court."

"I have my reasons for what I did, so everything was justified." Sasuke plainly answered again.

"Every criminal has a reason for what they do. That doesn't make it okay to break the law." Hiashi said firmly from his seat on the ninja council side.

"My duty and quest is more important than some mere set of rules that are meant for other people." Sasuke claimed irritably.

This did not go over well, as all council members gave each other looks. "So you believe that the law applies to everyone except you?" One of the civilian members asked.

"My goals are too important to be deferred by what others think should be done."

"Goals?" Inoichi repeated. "My best recollection is that your biggest priority is to kill your brother. Is there more?"

"To kill those that made Itachi do what he did to my clan. Which is all of Konoha." He answered, making almost everyone gasp or glare at him.

"Explain." Shikaku demanded.

Sasuke scoffed. "I owe you nothing."

"Since you're on trial you have to tell us everything you little..." Tsunade started, but had to calm herself or the ruling could be considered based on emotions rather than facts later thus a mistrial. "In that case, we can add 'intent to endanger village and occupants' to the list of charges."

"Speaking of charges, Hokage-sama," One of the civilian members started. "Would you care to elaborate on the charge of attacking a child? That one's new to me."

"Us too." Virtually all the council members said.

"Well, not too long ago Naruto Uzumaki was on a trip to Wave, and accompanying him were Hinata Hyuuga and their adopted child Akane Uzumaki. During their time there they encountered Sasuke Uchiha and tried to incapacitate him, but he dragged the young girl into the battle and wounded her by direct physical assault. She's fine now though."

Everyone in the courtroom not already aware of that event gasped. Most that knew Akane were ready to cut off some random body part Sasuke had. Sasuke himself just snorted. "You mean the girl with the red hair? That's no ordinary child. She's a monster and should be killed." He stood up as if that would make them believe him more and two Anbu rushed to press kunais against him as a warning. "I should have known idiots here would be willing to defend a monster. They did with the dobe too."

"On what grounds do you have that a mere child is a monster?" Tsunade asked, hoping he didn't say anything that could ruin Akane's chances for a normal life.

"Why don't you see for yourselves?" Sasuke asked. He then snatched one of the kunais out of the Anbu's grasp with his remaining hand and threw it as best he could at Akane. Expecting her to defend herself in some kind of demonic way, Sasuke watched as she instead got impaled in her left shoulder and screamed in pain.

Hinata and Naruto immediately pulled out the kunai and checked the wound. Nothing serious, just a flesh wound. Everyone else who could see checked too and saw she was bleeding pretty badly. Naruto and Hinata glared at the Uchiha with so much hate right then that everyone knew no matter what happened today Sasuke was going to bleed even worse later. In fact, they didn't want to wait, as Hinata charged right at him to beat him worse than an unweighted Lee could while Naruto kept anyone from interfering.

All the shinobi looked at this with grins, none bigger than the one on Hiashi's face. 'Damn, what a backbone. Hitomi you would be proud of our daughter, and I hope you would adore her daughter as well.'

"Hokage-sama, shouldn't we stop this?" A civilian member asked.

Tsunade shook her head. "To do so would mean condoning the Uchiha's attack. And Hinata Hyuuga's actions are well within her rights, since she is legally the injured child's mother." Tsunade had made that part official right after the engagement between the two was confirmed to her.

"Maybe, but shouldn't we stop it anyway?" Another member asked.

"If it had been your child he struck, what would you do?" Tsunade asked.

Nobody said anything, because ninja or not, each one of them would assault someone who dared to throw a kunai at their children. At this point anyone who had been supporting the Uchiha had decided not to, as there was just no good reason to defend someone who admitted he wanted to destroy the village and would openly attack a child with weapons. And if they pushed for any form of leniency in his sentence they would potentially lose all business and connections. For all basic purposes, the Uchiha had dug his own grave.

Hinata stopped when her adrenaline rush died down, and stood panting over the Uchiha. Her knuckles were bruised and bleeding from hitting so much, especially the chains that sometimes took the hit for Sasuke. But it was those same chains that made him unable to fight back, so he took a rather good beating. Only Sakura or Tsunade could have done better. Naruto came up behind her and put his arms around her. She relaxed, and then spat on Sasuke as a final insult before turning back to her seat.

"For the record Hinata Hyuuga and Naruto Uzumaki will not be held accountable for their actions here. They were well within their rights to do such a thing. And on a personal note, I'm rather impressed." Tsunade declared.

Sasuke managed to sit up and glared at the hokage. "They're allowed to attack an Uchiha and get away with it but I'm being held on charges for attacking a dobe everyone else wanted to have die? You bitch."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "Your name will not grant you any privileges here traitor. And at least Naruto never actually tried to hurt anyone, unlike you." She then looked over the audience. "Is there anyone here who wishes to speak on the Uchiha's behalf?" No one spoke up or raised a hand. "Anyone?" Again, no response. "Alright then. In that case, would Sasuke's former team members come up to give testimony regarding his behavior since you're the closest ones to knowing him?"

Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi came forward and stood before the council, with Naruto giving Sasuke a look that clearly said 'don't you dare try anything'. Tsunade faced the masked jounin. "Kakashi Hatake, formerly the sensei of the Uchiha. What is your professional opinion of him?"

"Well, I did tell him when he was younger to let go of the past and try to enjoy the people around him, but he apparently chose not to. While he does have talent and drive, he clearly isn't using it in honorable ways. Whether or not he was being influenced by Orochimaru is a moot point, since irregardless of the reasons, the fact remains that he has committed crimes and obviously intends to commit more if given the chance. I say do what needs to be done and nothing less."

Tsunade nodded to show she had listened, then turned to her second apprentice. "Sakura Haruno, formerly a teammate of the Uchiha. What is your _professional _opinion of him?" Given the pink-haired girl's past history, she had to emphasize the professional part here. She saw Sasuke smirk here, and figured he believed she'd blindly defend him like always.

Sakura sighed, thinking of her words carefully. "In all honesty, I admit long ago I wanted to believe he had good reasons for what he did, even if we couldn't understand them. But after everything I've learned and seen, all I can see now is a maniac that's willing to hurt anyone to make himself feel better. I trust your judgment regarding him, sensei."

Tsunade smirked and Sasuke scowled. "So bitch you desert me too?"

Sakura gave him a cold look. "Well it's not like you've done anything to make me do anything else."

Before more could be said, Tsunade turned to the orange-loving shinobi. "Naruto Uzumaki, former teammate of the Uchiha. What is your professional opinion of him?"

"He's committed many crimes, endangered many people, and shows no sign of repentance. I say throw the book at him."

"Dually noted. You three may be seated." The hokage told them. As they walked back to their seats, the council members started whispering to one another regarding what to do. "With no other statements to be made the council and I will take a one hour recess to decide on proper sentencing. Court will resume then. Anbu, take the Uchiha to a holding cell in the meantime."

As everyone got up and ready to stretch their legs, Akane grabbed the copy of Icha Icha Kakashi had pulled out and hurled it at Sasuke, hitting him in the back of the head. Everyone around her gave her a surprised look. "What? Otou-san said to throw a book at him."

"Let's go out before he tries to kill you." Naruto said as he picked her up and on his shoulders, taking her away from the fuming emo.

Kakashi quickly went to grab his precious porn. 'Sure hope she didn't damage it.'


	39. Chapter 39

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Tsunade and Naruto would be related in some way. Think about it, they're both blonde, both have compulsive addictions, and doesn't Tsunade's brother Nawaki look too much like Naruto for it to be a coincidence? Just my view on the subject._

Chapter 39: The Mind Of A Ninja And The Fate Of A Traitor

Once outside everyone who had been concerned for Akane's injury tried to treat her wound. This for the most part consisted of Naruto, Hinata, Hanabi, Shiba, Noburo, Sakura, Kiba, Shino, Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Tenten, Neji, Lee, Kurenai with her son, Gai, and the Ichiraku's. Sakura got there first though. "I'll just use a healing jutsu to patch it up. Better than any band-aid." Akane looked hesitant, but she couldn't get away so she moved her short sleeve enough to show the wound. However, there was no wound anymore, just dried blood and some tender red skin. "But how did that happen?"

"I'm a quick healer, like Otou-san." Akane answered.

"If he's going to be executed then I'm going to volunteer for the job." Hinata angrily claimed, clenching her fist. This new Hinata frightened everyone, except for Naruto, Akane, Hanabi, and Neji. The Hyuugas and Naruto were thrilled to see such will power and dedication in her, while Akane could never be afraid of the alpha-female of her pack.

"Why would he try to hurt you Akane-chan?" Shiba asked. By now Kakashi had joined the group to see how bad things were.

Akane shrugged. "Beats me. I don't understand anyone with an evil eye." She then gave Kakashi a rather innocent face. "Including you, smut lover." Several people there tried to suppress giggling at Kakashi's nickname and were failing miserably.

Akane of course did understand why Sasuke had done what he did. He had seen her fox traits back at Wave and suspected something was up with her. Even if he hadn't concluded she was the new kyuubi, he had to suspect some kind of connection. And with her being so close to Naruto, the former jinchuuriki of said bijuu, that would only make the connection stronger. So even if he didn't know all the facts, the Uchiha was at least partially right when he said she wasn't normal. And apparently he believed that if he attacked her she'd do something that would prove him right. Or maybe turn into her turn form involuntarily in front of everyone.

But there were two things Sasuke didn't count on in that instance. One, that kitsunes are the best shape-shifters among the demon races and involuntarily changes only happen for the weak-willed ones. Akane was anything but weak-willed. And two, Akane could have dodged such an attack easily. She was able to do the substitution jutsu and was fast enough to rip off a fox's tail before they even noticed she'd moved behind them. So was it really likely that she couldn't dodge a kunai being thrown at her by a one-armed man in chains? No, and the only reason it happened was because Akane let it happen. She heard from Naruto that several people would possibly try to make it so Sasuke wasn't punished so harshly, and she figured if he succeeded in hurting her right then, then no one could support him anymore. Besides, it was just a flesh wound and those heal well for her. It was also a good thing that almost everyone was behind her so they couldn't see red chakra healing the wound, and those that could were blocked by Hinata. All in all, it was a risky act that Akane had not been planning on, but took full advantage of.

"If I know the legal system correctly, the Uchiha's in way too deep. Execution is the only reasonable outcome." Kurenai stated, minding her fussing son.

"But you just know someone on the council is going to plead for sperm donations to keep the sharingan from going extinct. And where there's one there's bound to be another." Shikamaru added, tempted to light a cigarette but holding back for the sake of the kids and baby present.

"But even if they do agree to that, there are limits to what they can insist." Gai pointed out. "Konoha's charter states that no kekkei genkai or combat style can be forced onto a set clan. So in many of your families cases, where you've already got a set manner of training and fighting made specifically for you, they cannot force you to add a new element in that could potentially render all your traditional methods compromisable or obsolete."

"Meaning that only civilians or ninjas that don't come from established clans can be initially eligible for receiving the sharingan, unless a clan does want to attempt using it first." Kakashi summarized.

"I wish they would just drop the issue already." Shikamaru complained. "I mean, if any new Uchiha are born, even if they're not raised by him, the council is gonna push them into being ninjas like Sasuke had been and maybe pamper them so they won't try to leave too. They did that approach with Sasuke already and look where it got him. Doing it again won't guarantee any new results. In fact, that's the definition of insanity when you think about it."

"All that for a pair of evil eyes?" Akane asked.

"What exactly do you have against the sharingan?" Kakashi curiously asked.

Akane hung her head, choosing her next words carefully. "I only recently remembered it, but years ago, someone with those eyes tried to control me and make me hurt a lot of people. I can't remember much, but that I do know."

Almost everyone paled at this. "Someone actually tried to hypnotise you into being a weapon?" Tenten asked.

Akane sadly nodded. "I don't remember what I did or how, but deep down I know it was bad. If I can become strong enough to become hokage someday and protect this village, then maybe I can make up for it."

Everyone felt stricken for the little girl in front of them, and no one felt it was a good idea to push the issue of her past. Those that knew her true identity understood her real meaning, and somehow knew that if anyone could do more for Konoha than Naruto, it would be her. Naruto patted her uninjured shoulder to gain her attention. "C'mon, since we've got time, let's go have dinner."

Akane nodded. "What are we having?"

Teuchi grinned. "If you guys come by our shop I think we can spare her a free bowl since she got hurt badly."

Akane licked her lips, but then looked up to Hinata, remembering what the Hyuuga heiress told her the other day about being grounded from ramen. Said heiress softly smiled at her. "It's okay Akane-chan, just for today anyways."

Everyone went off to relax for the remainder of the break while Naruto, Hinata, Akane, and the Ichiraku's went to the ramen shop. 'Hmm... getting hurt will earn me a free bowl and even Okaa-san won't say no. I gotta remember that.' Akane deviously noted.

* * *

The break ended and everyone returned to the courtroom. Akane had her left shoulder wrapped in medic tape mostly for show or to avoid questioning, and Naruto and Hinata were armed in case the Uchiha tried anything again. Before they sat down, they noticed Sasuke had already been brought inside and chained in place, with two more Anbu standing guard. He probably should have been sedated, but sadly for everyone else he needed to be conscious to hear the verdict. After everyone in the audience sat down, the council members and hokage entered and took their respective seats.

After quickly glancing to see how Akane was faring, Tsunade called everyone to order. "After reviewing the charges, testimony, and witnessed actions of the accused, we find Sasuke Uchiha guilty on all charges." She paused for a moment to see if anyone would react, but none did. Sasuke frowned but nothing more. "His clan estate will become city property and all assets will become public domain."

"You can't do that! Those belong to the Uchiha clan!" Sasuke shouted.

"There is no more Uchiha clan." Tsunade told him. "You are but one person, and one person does not make a clan. And irregardless of your claims to be the sole inheritor, you forfeited any inheritance within Konoha once you left it and conspired against it. Despite whatever your ego may say, this village does not need the Uchiha's to exist. We've been without you for years and we'll continue to flourish without you even longer. Your eyes are not as special as you believe them to be. They're just a cheap short cut you take for granted."

For years Tsunade had theorized that since doujutsu's had a direct link to the brain for perceptive purposes they had a certain effect on the mentality of the wielder. The byakugan, with it's near 360 degree vision scope and x-ray abilities meant that the user was more analytical and cautious, and generally had a good eye for detail. She couldn't confirm anything about the rinnegan since she had very little experience dealing with it and had only heard speculation. The sharingan, being the most complex of the known doujutsus, meant that the user was more likely to be power-hungry and callous. The jutsu-copying meant the user felt power could simply be given to a person, or taken if need be. The hypnotism made the user believe it was okay for them to control others for their own ends. The violent upgrades meant only the most unscrupulous Uchiha's could advance their skills, and with being pressured to be better morals became thinner to them over time. And the unique jutsus Tsukuyomi, Amaterasu, and Susanoo gave the wielder a sense of overconfident superiority over others.

And so far Sasuke had not proven Tsunade wrong. She brought up her theory when the council collaborated on the sentence, and she had enough experience with the Uchiha clan to have more references than Sasuke and even Itachi. A few members thought she was being too harsh but Inoichi seconded her theory saying he felt the same way. In fact the Yamanaka clan understood the human mind better than anyone in Konoha and had concluded long ago that jutsus and kekkei genkais shaped and reflected the mentality of the user. Aburame's had a hive mentality, Inuzuka's had feral instincts, Yamanaka's had good memories, and Uchiha's had selfish compulsions. There were exceptions of course in all cases but for the most part this was how they were.

"Anyway, as I was saying, the Uchiha estate will become available for public use and purchase soon. And all funds left in the Uchiha name will go to the town treasury. However, due to your recent actions, 25% of both land and money will be granted to the Uzumaki's in restitution, to be used as they see fit." Tsunade continued.

"Over my dead body." Sasuke stated.

Tsunade's eyes gained a twinkle. "My thoughts exactly, traitor. For you see, all that will happen after your personal punishment, which has been ruled to be execution. Exactly how that will happen we're still debating over, but it will happen."

"You can't. My doujutsu is too valuable to lose and if you kill me there won't be any other Uchiha's using their sharingan for this pathetic village." Sasuke countered, thinking he had just made their decision moot.

Tsunade shrugged as if it were nothing. "Other bloodlines have gone extinct before and the world's gone on without them. And we don't need you alive to keep the sharingan around; we can always collect genetic samples if we had to."

Sasuke frowned. "If you did that and killed me then who'd teach the kids how to use the sharingan? Kakashi? I doubt it."

"Like we'd let you? You've admitted you don't care for this village at all so if you had any child you'd teach them to follow your agenda rather than the villages. And if Kakashi is still able to teach by the time they got an active sharingan then I'm sure he'd be willing to." Tsunade looked at Kakashi briefly, who nodded inconspicuously. "And that's only if we do such a thing?"

"If?" Sasuke asked.

"Well, even though the sharingan raises many questions regarding the morality of it's bearer, we've agreed on a trial test to see if 'Nature vs. Nurture' applies here." Tsunade answered. "We will allow two women, maybe three, to bear children from your seed and see if it's the doujutsu that causes the Uchiha's to be immoral or if it's the home environment. But this will only happen if we have volunteers for this; if not, then the sharingan truly dies with you. And you have no say regarding this."

"You cannot do this. The Clan Restoration Act is supposed to apply to me so I cannot be executed." Sasuke stated, recalling a few things the council told him long before he left Konoha.

"Check the charter. Traitors cannot invoke the CRA and even if it is invoked they aren't allowed any contact with their offspring due to prison or death. You're a traitor plain and simple and traitors have no rights in a ninja village, no matter what their ancestry." Tsunade told him, then decided to finish this. "If anyone wishes to volunteer for the sharingan preservation process fill out a written request and mail it to the hokage's office. All requests must be completely voluntary and unpressured and the women in question will be asked to confirm that and their reasons. The Uchiha section of town will be up for sale to everyone first thing tomorrow but the Uzumaki family will meet with me first to choice their given property and receive financial compensation for repeated attacks on them. Sasuke Uchiha's execution will be scheduled for two days from today, and until then he will be held in a highly guarded cell without visitation rights. Court is adjourned."

It seemed Sasuke was out of rants and just stayed silent, which everyone was grateful for. People started to leave the room and Anbu began to escort Sasuke back to his cell. Before they left, Akane walked up to him before her parents could stop her and threw a water balloon in his face. She walked away laughing before he could do anything to her.

"Akane-chan, where'd you get that water balloon from?" Naruto asked, having never seen her go near a faucet yet.

"I didn't."

"What do you mean?" Hinata asked.

Akane grinned like a fox. "That wasn't water."

Sasuke frowned as he tasted the liquid on his face. 'Ugh, ramen broth. What an insult.'


	40. Chapter 40

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Naruto would have more wind attack jutsus like Temari, instead of just the rasen-shuriken._

_It seems almost everyone was hoping Akane would have used urine instead of ramen broth in that water balloon. To be honest, that actually was my first choice, but I decided at the last minute to change that. I'm still not sure what I can and can't get away with in a T-rated fic._

Chapter 40: Troublesome Issues Get Resolved

Night came and everyone in the Konoha 11 was ready to go to sleep. Akane had already gone to bed and Hinata was planning on staying the night in the apartment anyways, liking being able to see her fiancee and daughter when she woke up. Naruto wouldn't protest that and apparently neither would Hiashi. If anything the Hyuuga head liked that she wanted this, not that he had any desire to be rid of her. Hanabi seemed to like it too, and Neji seemed to be the only one cautious about it. He wasn't going to stop her, but he did give Naruto a word of warning though.

Neji's exact words were, "Just remember, we can see if her barrier is intact or not."

Naruto's response to that was, "And why would you be looking there at your own cousin? Hinata told me you had some weird fetishes but nothing like that."

Let's just say the two had their first real fight since the chuunin exams, until Hinata stopped them that is. Neither could bring themselves to tell her exactly what had sparked it though.

Sometime around midnight after three hours of sleeping comfortably, Akane heard a light knock on her window and irritably woke up. When she looked out, she saw a woman wearing a red kimono with auburn hair perched on the tree next to the building. She didn't recognize the woman, but felt she should have. Akane cautiously opened the window. "Who are you?" She asked, then recognized the newcomer's scent. Now she frowned for more than just being woken up. "What do _you_ want?"

Keisei, one of the few foxes to have met this new kyuubi and not lose a tail to her, bowed her head. "Forgive me for disturbing you, Akane-sama, but I needed to tell you this now."

"For the last time I'm not going to be your queen." Akane said thru clenched teeth, trying not to shout and disturb her parents.

"I'm here to let you know that the foxes won't bother you anymore. A new Council of Eight has been put into power, and once they saw what you did with the previous one, they felt it was wiser to just give you space for now."

"Good." Akane smiled. "Wait. For now?"

"Just until you're older and more mature. Until then, none of us will disturb you. They did ask that I make you an offer for the time being though."

"Like what?"

Keisei composed herself to try and avoid any phrasing that may set the young kyuubi off. "I or someone else, most likely another vixen, could offer to help teach you a few things you'll need to know."

"What can you possibly teach me that my parents can't?" Akane narrowed her eyes at the auburn vixen in human form.

"Things vital to a fox, such as understanding of natural instincts and talents."

"Doesn't sound vital to me. I'm doing pretty good as I am."

"But someday you'll need to know more about your vulpine nature. After all, you're a fox and everyone else here is a human. There are some things you cannot learn from them." Keisei argued without sounding tough.

"I understand my instincts just fine and I know my talents." Akane countered confidently.

"But what about your abundant chakra? How are you going to control all that power?" Keisei asked.

"There are sensei's here who will help me. And Otou-san has been a lot of help with me and my chakra."

Can he help you reach your full potential? You don't even know what all you can do, do you?"

"And you do?" Akane asked like she didn't believe the older fox demon.

"Even though I never personally interacted with... your previous self, I was informed about her skills. Most connected to the ruling class are. The last kyuubi had a great amount of power, and could use all the chakra elements and sub-elements."

Akane blinked. "All of them?" Keisei nodded. "How is that possible?"

Keisei shrugged. "None one, not even the previous kyuubi knew that. Maybe it had something to do with what the Sage of Six Paths did to the Juubi. Or maybe it has to do with the nature of the bijuus themselves."

"The nature of the bijuus?" Akane repeated with an arched eyebrow.

Keisei nodded. "Yes. You see, the Sage of Six Paths wrote long ago that the Juubi was a creature of enormous power that was like a physical embodiment of the apocalypse. And when he destroyed it and created the nine bijuu, each one of them was a living symbol of other natural disasters. The ichibi represents sandstorms, the nibi forest fires, the sanbi floods, the yonbi volcanic eruptions, the gobi droughts, the rokubi famine, the shichibi plagues, the hachibi earthquakes, and the kyuubi tsunamis. All their chakra's reflect those too, and since yours is the most devastating, your chakra is too."

Akane blinked a few more times then smiled proudly and pumped her fist. "Wow. I'm gonna rock as a ninja then."

"But you're going to need help learning how to control it and make the most of it." The auburn-haired woman reminded her.

"And I have Otou-san and Okaa-san for that as well as the sensei's. I don't need any foxes for that."

Keisei gave her a patient but tired look. "Well, what about courtship customs? What about when you want to find a mate but have no idea how or what to do when you've got one."

"Again, Otou-san and Okaa-san. They're practically mates now anyway. And I'm only eight. I'm not looking for a mate anytime soon. I don't need your help."

"But Akane-sama--"

"Thanks, but I don't need your help." Akane told her forcibly.

Keisei just looked at her and after a moment sighed. "Fine. If you're so confident, I'll leave you to your human instructors. But I'll be back in a few years to give you the offer again. Maybe by then you'll understand what I'm trying to tell you."

"I'll take my chances here with those I trust." Akane remarked.

Keisei nodded slowly, the message being loud and clear. "Farewell for now, Akane-sama." She then vanished as if summoned away.

"I sure hope no more foxes come by anytime soon." The redhead muttered while she closed the window and climbed back in bed. "This is _my_ territory."

* * *

Two days went by, and so far the only real notable thing that happened was Hinata bringing some of her things into Naruto's place. She already had a key and since she had complete permission to come whenever she wanted and stay as long as she wanted she might as well have a few things there. It probably wouldn't last long, since odds were they were going to move into one of the old Uchiha houses once the deal was done. They just had to wait until Sasuke officially died to be given the property. And since they would be given one-fourth of the entire Uchiha district, they'd have more room than they needed, which they could either sell off or give to their friends to use.

"Won't that be nice Naruto? Having a big house for the three of us, may... maybe four or five?" Hinata asked her soon-to-be husband as they sat down on a park bench drinking some sodas while Akane, Shiba, and even Noburo played tag with some other kids. Tenten had been with them too to watch over her 'little brother' but was currently on a five-minute errand for Gai.

"It would be better than trying to fit us all in that apartment. But it would feel weird to live in a house that belonged to the teme's family." Naruto replied.

"It doesn't anymore. Now they're just normal houses, and we can make one our first home." Hinata told him to ease his slight unease at the concept. "Besides, you can think of it as a way to rub in his face how you've triumphed over him again, if you're living there and he isn't."

Naruto smirked and silently laughed. "Bet that would piss him off while he rots in the shinigami's gut. Think it would be enough to give him indigestion?"

"Maybe. The Uchiha did always come across to me as sour."

Tenten came back from her errand just then. "Hey guys, any idea when the execution is supposed to happen today?"

Both Naruto and Hinata shook their heads. "Nope, but it doesn't matter. Baa-chan said that executions usually aren't public. Makes it too open for hidden allies to try and help the traitor out if they know exactly when and where it's gonna happen."

"Really? Bummer. I was kinda hoping to see him get what he has coming." Tenten sighed as she sat down next to the happy couple. "Think anyone is gonna actually try to have a kid from him?"

"Not sure. I think Sakura-chan might at least consider it, but I can't speak for her." Naruto thought aloud. "But like the execution, if anyone decides to have an Uchiha baby, that info won't be made public."

"That's probably for the best." Hinata suggested. "If everyone knew about the child, they'd just see Sasuke and be hostile towards him or her. They'd never have a normal childhood. And once they get their sharingan, they'd always have people suspicious of what they might do."

"Basically a repeat of Naruto's childhood, huh?" Tenten asked. By now all of the Konoha 11 had a good idea of just what the blonde shinobi had to endure growing up and hated how they never noticed or did anything about it back then. At least he didn't hold it against them, much to their relief and gratitude. That and more made them glad to know Naruto and someday serve under him when he donned the hokage hat.

All three ninja silently agreed to just drop the subject. The end result was out of their hands so talking about it was pointless. Not sure what else to say, they just went back to watching the kids have fun. Akane tripped Noburo and tagged him, making him 'it' before dashing away, making Naruto and Hinata smile at seeing her enjoy herself.

* * *

Later that night, several top Anbu and hunter nin had gathered in a secluded high-security room where nothing could get in or out without being noticed. Also in that room were Tsunade, Anko, and Sasuke, chained to the wall spread eagle. He could rant or grimace or make demands if he wanted to, but he didn't. Instead he just hung his head like someone who had just given up. Either way, in case he did try to pull something, that's what the Anbu and hunter nin were for. They'd kill him before he got five steps away from the door.

"Before we do this, any last words?" Tsunade asked.

"Just get it over with. I'm tired of waiting."

"Really? That's it? No grand pompous gesture of supremeness?"

Sasuke refused to meet anyone's eyes, but he did respond. "I have nothing to prove to you, or this village that owes it's existence to my family and betrayed them horribly. I tried to get what was rightfully mine and deserved, and they've all betrayed me for a pathetic demon. You want me dead, fine kill me. But someday, someone will kill the dead last and those he cares about. I may not live to see it, but someday, their demon luck will run out. And I'm sure you'll all regret turning your back on the Uchiha's when it happens."

"I'll let him know what you think. Don't feel bad if he disagrees." Tsunade stated. "Ready?" She asked as she raised her right hand to signal the others. All got out some kunais, ready on her command. "Now." The hokage added as she lowered her hand quickly.

All of the jounin-ranked ninjas struck one of many very vital spots on Sasuke's anatomy. He was already bleeding quickly, and would surely run out of blood in less than three minutes. He coughed up some blood, screaming and struggled in pain, and soon his movements got slower and his screams got quieter. In no time at all, he was still and silent, dead.

But just to be sure, Anko set up a fire jutsu and cremated the body. There was no struggle, so apparently he wasn't still alive at the time. As the body burned, Anko gave the hokage a quick glance. "Almost wish I brought some marshmallows. But then again, he might make them taste like crap."

"That's a pretty twisted sense of humor Mitarashi-san." One of the Anbu told her.

"Thanks."


	41. Chapter 41

_I don't own Naruto. But if I did, Naruto and Hinata would definitely be married before the final chapter. What better ending could there be?_

_At the time this chapter was written, Ch. 480 of the manga was the newest one available._

Chapter 41: Long Awaited Events Finally Happen

The day had finally come, the day of Naruto and Hinata's wedding. Only two months after Akane entered their lives. This was pretty soon by civilian standards, but then again ninja lived by a different set of rules. Long engagements were never common among ninjas, since that just ran the risk of not living long enough to actually get married. Besides, Hinata was downright impatient when it came to officially becoming Naruto's wife. So impatient that virtually every detail of the ceremony had already been prepared for.

Whenever questions regarding planning for the wedding came up, Hinata surprised everyone by having about 98% of the whole thought already thought out. She had been planning this for quite some time. She had decided on the decorations, the guest list, the catering, the location, the music, and even the outfits. Naruto was impressed and maybe a little intimidated that she had been doing this ever since they started regularly dating. She said it had just been a pet project for her that was coming in very handy right now. So far the only things she hadn't already selected were the brides maids outfits, and some details she left specifically to Naruto.

Not to say Hinata was some sort of bride-zilla. When considering all things she made sure to keep his interests in mind too. Some of the decorations and even food selected were more for him then for her. And the tuxedo she had made especially for him had some light orange lining on the edges, not abundant because even Hinata disliked the idea of an orange tuxedo. She almost never made a decision here that was purely just for her. When asked why, her answer was that she wasn't going to be the only one up at the altar so he deserved to be considered in designing the ceremony too. Hinata felt most brides forgot that little detail.

The ceremony was held inside one of Konoha's chapels, and it was packed. Tsunade was going to act as the priest since the hokage had the legal right to do so in ninja weddings and she wasn't going to be denied this right. Shizune had been selected as the maid of honor and Neji got to be Naruto's best man. Sakura, Ino, and Tenten were Hinata's brides maids, dressed in a yellow outfit Ino had picked and Hinata liked. Kiba, Shino, and Lee were Naruto's supporting men, all dressed in normal tuxedos. You could actually see all of Shino's face now, even his eyes, which surprised everyone. There were no ring bearers or flower girls here so the kids had nothing to do but sit down and watch.

So far the seats were occupied by virtually everyone who knew Naruto and Hinata. Those from Konoha consisted of Kakashi, Yamato, Iruka, Teuchi, Ayame, Hiashi, Hanabi, a few more Hyuuga Naruto didn't recognize, Anko, Ibiki, Izumo, Kotetsu, Gai, Kurenai with her son, Tsume, Hana, Shiba and her parents, Tenten's father and Noburo, Konohamaru, Moegi, Udon, Ebisu, Shino's parents, Ino's parents, Shikamaru and his parents, Chouji and his parents, some Anbu and civilians who liked the couple, surprisingly Sakura's mother, and of course Akane.

There were also several from outside Konoha that made it to the ceremony. Attending were Gaara and a pregnant Matsuri with their two bijuu children, which Matsuri took a liking to instantly, Temari, Kankuro, Isaribi, Tazuna, Tsunami, Inari, Gamakichi, Gamatatsu, and surprisingly Shion. That last one was a little awkward for Naruto, because after he finally figured out what she meant when she asked him to help her continue the priestess line, he had to tell her he didn't at the time know what she meant and already had a girlfriend. Shion surprisingly took it well, and said if he ever changed his mind, the offer would still be available. Hinata had said nothing about it because she trusted Naruto and knew he wouldn't do anything to hurt her. That didn't mean she wasn't upset about the idea though.

The ceremony was about to start, and everyone was in place. Naruto saw Akane sitting between Shiba and Hanabi looking a little bored and fiddling with a hollow rubber ball, the next stage of the rasengan training. She was getting closer to being able to make a working one, but wasn't quite there yet. Nevertheless, he was proud of her progress with it. Same for the Konohamaru troops, since Moegi and Udon each finally managed to make one with a shadow clone too.

"Bet you're looking forward to tonight, eh?" Kiba whispered casually to the waiting groom. Akamaru was with the other Inuzuka's for the time being.

"Like you need to hear anything about that." Naruto whispered back.

"I'm taking that as a yes." Kiba replied.

"Quiet. This is no time or place for such lowbrow discussion." Shino quietly told them.

The music began and everyone in the audience knew to stop whispering to each other too and turned to see the bride walk into the room. One couldn't see it thru the veil, but Naruto just knew she was blushing to a whole new degree. And why not? Her childhood fantasy was happening here and now, not to mention her dress showed off her body rather than hide it. Luckily no one made any comments about her wearing white, although a few did suspect she shouldn't have. They were wrong though, for the record.

Hinata reached the altar and Naruto lifted the veil. Her face was red but happy, and her eyes struggled poorly to contain a few tears of joy. She was so happy right then she could scream in triumph, but that just wasn't her nature. Speaking of which, the only thing that worried her was if she might faint or stutter soon. She had done wonders for those habits, but if one were to resurface she'd be way too embarrassed.

Tsunade decided to begin before the bride did faint. "We are gathered here today to witness the joining together of Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuuga, as if you didn't already know that." She sort of thought it might have been a good idea for Naruto to take on the Namikaze name, but he declined, saying even if Iwa wouldn't target him, they could target the rest of his family. Besides, he was just too used to being an Uzumaki to be anything else. Ignoring the issue, she continued. "It can be hard to find that special someone for you in anyone's life, and for shinobi it can be even harder. But these two have managed to do just that, and I'm sure you'll agree with me when I say this isn't the first time Naruto has done what others said he never could."

Many smiled and nodded in agreement. Naruto himself just gave Tsunade a quick bothered look, as if to tell her to lay off the personal comments and just do her job. She ignored it of course. "I am glad beyond measure that these two competent and noble shinobi have been able to find their other half and can share their lives together, and I'm sure others would say the same. If there is anyone here who thinks these two should not be wed in holy matrimony... SHUT UP AND KEEP IT TO YOURSELF!" Everyone gave her a wide-eyed look at her yell. "Hey, it needed to be said. Now, if the two lovebirds have anything to say to one another before this is concluded, say it now."

Naruto, the better speaker of the two, gave his vows first. "Hinata-chan, if someone had told me when I made genin that you'd be the one here with me today, I'd have called them crazy. And that would have been the dumbest thing I ever said. Even now, I'm still amazed and flattered that a fine woman such as yourself could find no greater joy than being with me. Maybe I can't offer you more than some other clans can, but I know you don't want that stuff. You want this so-called knucklehead instead, and while I can't promise you we'll live in the kind of luxury you're used to, I swear you'll never regret taking an interest in me."

Hinata's eyes shined and a few tears of joy rolled down her grinning face. Several women thought that was very sweet, and a number of them wished they had seen what a fine catch he was before Hinata already got her hooks in him.

Hinata then gave her own vows. "Na-Naruto-kun, I've been w-waiting for this day for a long time, and I'm so happy it's finally come. You... you have been my inspiration, m-my hero, my source of courage, and most importantly my friend, for as long as I've known you. I could never imagine myself with another, and even though... I had to wait for you to s-see me the same way, it was worth it because I'm here with you now and will be with you from now on. And I just know things are going to get better, because I have you and Akane-chan too."

When it looked like Hinata was finished and still able to stay conscious, Tsunade continued her role. "Naruto, do you take this woman to be your lawfully-wedded wife, and promise to care for her thru good times and bad, until death do you part?"

Half-tempted to say 'Believe it', the orange-loving ninja chose the more traditional answer. "I do."

"Hinata, do you take this man to be your lawfully-wedded husband, and promise to be by him thru good times and bad, until death do you part?"

"I do." The white-eyed kunoichi answered, almost ready to skip ahead to the honeymoon by now.

"Exchange the rings then, if you will." Tsunade told them. Neji handed Naruto the ring and he placed it on Hinata's finger. Shizune handed Hinata another ring and she placed it on Naruto's finger. "By the power vested in me as Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." Naruto and Hinata kissed, and tried to avoid turning it into a public make-out session. "Everyone, I give you Naruto and Hinata Uzumaki."

The crowd cheered, confetti burst from the ceiling, and shouts of praise were almost deafening. Once everyone settled down and the newlyweds changed into more comfortable clothes, the reception could begin. Naruto came out wearing a black kimono and Hinata wore a dark blue sleeveless dress that made her look exotic. The Akimichi's were begging for the banquet to begin so they didn't stall on getting everyone served. There were 10 tables to seat 8 people. The Ichiraku's made sure to bring a few bowls with them, much to Naruto's and Akane's pleasure. The cutting of the cake would be saved for dessert time.

Seated with Naruto and Hinata were Tsunade, Hiashi, Kurenai with Sorata on her lap, Iruka, Shizune, and Hanabi. Akane was seated with Shiba and the Inuzuka's for the time. "Well, Naruto, how long you gonna be gone for the honeymoon? I need to know how long I have to plan missions without my best shinobi available." Tsunade asked.

"For that matter, you never did tell us where you were going." Hiashi reminded them.

"We wanna keep that a secret. That way, we shouldn't run into any trouble or pervs." Naruto answered.

"Do you really think someone might follow you just to try and peek at what you two will do in private?" Kakashi asked.

Naruto shrugged. "Some might, right smut-lover?" Nobody besides Kakashi tried to not laugh just then.

"And Hokage-sama, we might need some more time off once we return." Hinata said after they stopped laughing. "We'll be gone about two weeks, but we might need a third week off to get our home and Akane-chan settled in too."

"By the way, who's watching her while you're gone?" Iruka asked.

"I volunteered." Tsunade answered. "I think I can handle two weeks with my granddaughter."

"No using her to get more booze." Hinata stated.

Tsunade grinned. "I don't need to. I'll still got more alcohol than a tavern stored away thanks to that little message she wrote."

"Even after two months?" Naruto asked.

The slug sannin nodded. "Yep. I'm not even halfway thru it yet. I'm not sure I'll finish going thru it by my next birthday, and she can just write that again and I'll get more all over again. And don't you dare tell her not to do that or I may have to reconsider having you as my successor gaki."

"Oh yeah? And who's better for the job than me?" Naruto asked.

Tsunade shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe Akane-chan. She's a strong one. Or how about your wife? She has to be a great ninja to put up with you as much as she does."

"I wouldn't dream of it. My husband deserves it and you know it." Hinata commented, loving how she could now refer to Naruto as her husband.

"Just remember Hinata, you'll have to be to him what I am to Tsunade-sama." Shizune told the new bride.

"I don't think he'll need help staying sober on the job."

Conversation stayed light and pleasant for them and all others attending. Those with the new couple offered a few words of advice to them on what to expect later on in life and how they can keep enjoying themselves. Akane enjoyed being with the Inuzuka's and gave them a careful false explanation when one asked why she smelled like a fox. Hanabi kept an eye on Konohamaru to see how friendly he was being with Moegi. Temari whispered something to Shikamaru that must have embarrassed him since he blushed and got fidgety. Gamakichi and Gamatatsu enjoyed themselves while wishing their father was small enough to have been able to come too.

Dessert time came and the two newlyweds cut the cake together. "Don't even think about crushing it in my face." Hinata whispered as they made the slices but the cater placed them on plates and handed them to the guests.

Naruto replied later by taking his own piece and doing just that to her. "You were saying?" A few chuckled with him.

"Oh yeah?" Hinata, not truly bothered, grabbed her slice and rubbed it in his face. Some guests cheered her on. "Now what do you have to say, wise guy?"

"Tastes great, but I still say that one with the chocolate layer would be as good."

"You're a goof, but you're mine and I love you." Hinata replied before the two kissed, heedless of the cake or frosting. They later wiped it off and grabbed fresh slices.

Everyone finished and some already took to dancing with some soft music playing. Naruto and Hinata shared a dance, and later did with others too. Naruto politely shared a dance with Sakura, Isaribi, Shion, and even Ayame, while Hinata did with Kiba, Shino, and Hiashi. Akane didn't dance at all, just watched and chatted with her bijuu cousins that lived in Suna and were happy with Gaara and Matsuri as parents. Naruto still thought it was funny how the demon Gaara once called 'Okaa' now called him 'Otou'. Konohamaru danced with both Moegi and Hanabi, Shikamaru danced with Temari because it would have been too troublesome to avoid it, and all already married couples danced too. Sakura shared a dance with Lee and Neji danced with Tenten too. Hinata wondered when her cousin was going to pop the question himself.

Eventually the ceremony came to an end and Naruto and Hinata got ready to leave. They said good bye to everyone and got ready to leave with Gamabunta carrying them away. Naruto swore to the big toad he'd get all the sake he wanted once they got there though, so he was willing to oblige. Before they left, Hinata threw the bouquet, and Konohamaru ended up catching it without trying too. Both Hanabi and Moegi gave him questioning looks, and he ran away before either girl could say anything to him.

"Kinda feel sorry for him." Naruto said when he got comfortable on Gamabunta's head.

"I feel more sorry for the girls. One or both is going to be let down eventually." Hinata commented as she got up to join him.

"Well, what'll happen wil happen. Come on, let's go enjoy ourselves."

Hinata nodded. Both of them waved good bye one more time as the big toads two sons got on him too and then he took off in a hurry.

"Have fun Okaa-san, Otou-san. Come back soon." Akane quietly said to herself when they left her sight.

* * *

Next week a new semester started in the academy, and Akane was now enrolled. Noburo too. The class filled up and the young kids reacquainted themselves with their old friends. Shiba took her usual seat and stayed there quietly. Noburo sat down a row in front of her and tried talking to some boys nearby. Iruka came in and called the class to order.

"Alright, welcome back to another semester. Here things will be a little tougher for you, but I'm sure you can handle it. Now, even though most of you know each other now, we have two new classmates joining us this year. Would those two please stand up and introduce themselves?"

The blue-haired boy formerly from Kiri arose. "Hi, I'm Noburo Sentaka. I'm the last of my clan and I hope to become a strong enough ninja to honor my family and someday rebuild it." He sat down, and it looked like some of the girls might like him already.

Iruka waited for Akane to introduce herself but couldn't see her. Getting worried, he glanced around until he saw her appear behind him, as if she had performed a substitution with his chair. His eyes practically burst out of his head when he saw she was wearing a red-and-black version of Naruto's genin outfit.

Akane jumped onto his desk and stood confidently. "Hi, I'm Akane Uzumaki, and I'm gonna be hokage someday no matter what. Believe it!" She then took a seat next to Shiba, earning many stares for her weird behavior.

'Oh great, here we go again.' Iruka thought wearily.

* * *

_And that's the end of "Naruto's Kit", for now. Before anyone asks, yes there will be a sequel. It'll cover Akane's ninja career as she tries to climb up the rank ladder all while keeping everyone from finding out she's the kyuubi. I'll post the first chapter sometime before the first day of March. That's the promise of a lifetime._


End file.
